Elegy of Faith
by FalconPain
Summary: The church sends the eldest daughter of Yoko Belnades to stop a vampiric army. Allies are made and lost. Deception waits at every turn. Her morals and ability come into question. And Death is watching her... Multiple endings.
1. Arrival

**Elegy of Faith**

**Chapter 1: Arrival**

In this day and age, the castle looked like nothing more than an anachronism.

The ramparts were positioned to give the inhabitants a good view of the surrounding European countryside, yet no one manned them. A moat was dug around the circumference, but the water had long since run dry. The drawbridge was left down, and the gates were open. What a waste, Suzume concluded. If she had known that they wouldn't have been spotted during their approach, she and her companion could have taken a car and driven on the dirt roads, rather than purchasing horses and riding through the forest.

Whoever had moved into this fortress was clearly not experienced at owning a castle. Not like Dracula, back in the day.

Dracula, Suzume thought. She had heard the name far too many times in her church studies. Everyone was afraid of the name. Everyone kept worrying that he would show his face again. Suzume never understood why. As far as she knew, Dracula had been destroyed for good back at the turn of the millennium, and no attempts to bring him back had ever been successful.

Sure, there were still outbreaks of the undead. In the wake of such a major battle, it was to be expected. So Suzume had been surprised to learn at a young age that her own church had undertaken efforts to travel to the locations of such incidents and purify the interlopers. Her mother in particular was well known for her magical ability and her involvement in preventing further widescale attacks. As long as no Belmont is old enough to wield the whip, the teachers said, it will fall to the church to ensure that humanity is not killed or corrupted by demonic forces.

So she was forced into the family business, she thought. And here she was, riding to one of the least protected castles in the entirety of Europe, to combat an undead army that had only destroyed a single village to date.

She shook her head. This was no way for a priestess to be thinking. Every human life mattered. And the townsfolk really had been hit hard, from what she had witnessed. The streets were filled with bloodied bodies. The survivors barely reached the double digits, and they themselves were clearly injured in the attack. She wished, not for the first time, that she had chosen to undergo healing studies over the past few years. Her mentor was quite skilled, she remembered, and she would have given almost anything to have been able to help those victims.

She focused again on her current task. The church had sent out a larger team, and they would be arriving shortly. They would be able to help rebuild the town and heal the villagers, assuming that they hadn't already moved on like some of them said they would. The important thing was that the villagers were able to point her and Samuel in the direction of the perpetrators. They were the ones who needed to be handled immediately.

"Which entrance do we use?" the aforementioned young priest asked.

Suzume glanced at the two sides of the castle in view. "The front gate's not guarded. Should we take the direct approach?"

Samuel shuddered. "I don't know. It could be a trap."

She shook her head. "Look at the sky. It's still a few hours until noon. Any undead we meet will be in a weakened state. If we take too much time seeking an alternate entrance, night could fall and we'll lose our advantage and element of surprise."

"As you say, Miss Belnades."

Suzume winced. "Please call me Suzume. I'm only 20. Don't talk to me like I'm an old woman."

* * *

The courtyard behind the main gate was guarded after all. But not very heavily, Suzume noticed. Just a number of zombies. She was able to return their dust to the earth with only a quick incantation and display of holy power, and even Samuel seemed to be handling them easily.

He had improved greatly in the past year, she thought. There were so many other clergymen that she would have preferred as her partner. Even her younger sister, she considered with a smirk. But the word of her superiors was the rule, and Samuel needed some experience, and Suzume had been providing it to him. And now it seemed like he was almost to the point where he could take on a partner of his own.

The next door was simple. Suzume gestured to Samuel, then grasped the door handle. Samuel prepared a spell to be released and took his position. Exactly three seconds later, Suzume pulled the door open suddenly and Samuel rushed in.

Six seconds later, he ran out of the room again. "Run for your life! It's a trap!"

Suzume sighed. He had been doing so well, too. She immediately started to close the door, but found it obstructed by something on the other end. Slowly, she peered around the side of the door to see what was...

A hand grasped her by the neck and pulled her into the room. As the door slammed closed behind her, Suzume looked around quickly and tried to get her bearings.

It was a small windowless chamber with two doors on opposite sides, probably used by guards as a second line of defense. Blocking the door opposite the entrance was a pale-looking woman with brown hair, dressed in a black dress with notable red highlights. Suzume could not see the person who was holding her from behind, but the hand was equally pale and looked to be masculine.

The one holding her spoke first. "Intruders. What should we do?"

The woman smiled, revealing what were clearly fangs on each side of her mouth. "The other one was smart to run. Perhaps we should give this one a chance to follow him?"

"You're vampires!" Suzume shouted.

The male voice sighed. "Thank you for stating the obvious."

The woman shook her head. "Please. No need to be so impolite. Who are you to barge into our domicile without our permission?"

Suzume worked out a strategy in her head. It was still daylight out. It was amazing that vampires would dare to be awake at this hour, even in a windowless room like this one. They had to be weaker than normal. They were also being entirely too self-confident. All it would take to gain the upper hand would be a single, quick move.

Suzume elbowed the male vampire in the ribs and tried to escape his grasp. While he did not flinch, he loosened his grip, allowing her freedom. This task completed, she took a position where she could see both vampires, and prepared a spell in her hand. "The dead don't need to ask for names", she said in her best threatening tone.

The female didn't lose her smile. Instead, the male stepped forward to approach her again. Now that she could see him, she could tell that he dressed very similarly to the female, with the same color pattern in his outfit.

Instinctively, Suzume threw her hand out, creating a small burst of holy power. The vampire simply moved his head back and allowed it to fizzle ineffectively. She tried again from a different angle. He moved his head to the side.

Two feints, she thought. Now for the finale. She threw out her _other_ arm and released the stored holy power in a much more explosive form at the vampire's chest. The blow struck true, and the vampire looked down to see where she had struck him. Then he looked up at her again and growled. "My turn", he said as he shoved her away a few feet with a single push.

As Suzume regained her balance, she saw that the vampire had drawn a sword from some part of his wardrobe. Where, she could not tell. This fight was not going to be won easily. She turned to glance at the female vampire, only to find that she was still smiling and had yet to move to aid in the battle.

The male took this opportunity to try to catch her off guard. Suzume expected this, and took a quick step to the side to dodge the swipe. Using her next amount of stored power, she shifted her balance from her dodge to take a quick step forward with intent to strike the head this time...

...and dashed directly into the blade of his sword, where it had been waiting for her.

As the pain started to become unbearable, Suzume looked down at the bloody wound in her chest, then up to face the vampire again. His expression had not changed. With an amount of speed not found in an average human, his other fist connected with her head.

* * *

"Are you injured?"

Suzume's vision was still foggy as she regained consciousness. Above her, the blurry figure of a man was kneeling down in front of her face. In her current condition, she could make out that he had reddish hair and was wearing dark grey clothing.

"You are alive. You are fortunate."

She blinked, then struggled to speak. "...who are..."

"Do not speak. Save your strength." He paused, lifting his head for a moment. "A group of representatives from the church will arrive shortly. They will be able to aid you."

Suzume remembered. The other team had been sent, hadn't it?

The man stood, revealing that he carried a staff. "I shall return when I can. Remain calm." And with those words, he moved out of her line of sight.

All was still for a few minutes. Unfortunately for Suzume, this meant that she had time to think about her situation.

How could she have been so stupid? Samuel was right. She had fallen directly into a trap. Everything she had done was anticipated by the vampires, and they had left her openings simply so they could counter the inevitable attempts to take advantage of them. And now here she was, lying on the floor, bleeding openly, quite possibly dying, with her only chance of survival resting in the hands of...

"Miss Belnades!"

"No! I hope we're not too late!"

The first voice was definitely Samuel, she thought. He had been smart enough to get out of Dodge before things got ugly. The man who accompanied him sounded older. More experienced. Not devoid of compassion for her...

"...Marcus..."

"Suzume!" the man said, kneeling down at her side. "Thank God you're okay!"

She could hardly believe it, but the evidence was right in front of her. Marcus, with his usual smiling face, slightly mussed black hair, and what appeared to be an attempt at a goatee on his chin. He was dressed in the white garments of a priest, yet in his usual manner, the shirt was left unbuttoned and worn as a jacket, revealing a buttonless black shirt below it. A rosary hung from his neck, completing the effect.

It was less than a week ago that her mentor had left the church on a pilgrimage. And now he was here, completely unexpectedly, just in time to see that his "prized student" had almost gotten herself killed in his absence.

To his credit, he didn't call attention to it. Instead, he focused on the immediate concern. "That's quite an injury. You're lucky we got here in time." As he spoke, he raised his right hand and moved it in the air in a counterclockwise circle as he drew magical energy. As he closed the circle, his hand proceeded to trace a pentacle within the boundary of where the circle would have been. Finally, he thrust his hand forward through the center of the pattern. "Heal!" he shouted, perhaps unnecessarily.

Suzume had been healed several times in her life, so this was not entirely new to her. She still enjoyed the sensation of the warmth running through her body as she felt the wounds close and the pain fade until it was nothing more than a memory. Marcus Williams had always been good at restorative magic, she recalled. According to rumors, he had specifically joined the church in hopes of having his actions formally supported by the group. Apparently in the past, he had been accused of dabbling in arts upon which man should not grow too reliant. That had never stopped Dracula, hearsay claimed he had said.

The truth was, despite his strong holy power and belief in upholding the common good, the church had never been sure what to make of Brother Williams. He was not a very pious man, and he had no qualms against breaking the rules of the church if he felt the results warranted his actions. Some felt that he should not be allowed to stay. Others were concerned that giving up an asset like him would be one of the greatest mistakes they could make.

The decision was quickly reached the moment Yoko Belnades requested him to tutor her daughters. When Lady Belnades spoke, everyone in the church listened. It would not do to ignore the opinions of the one who had inspired the church to reach the point where it was today, and who also had the benefit of coming from a long line of magicians who had been known to battle the forces of darkness many centuries before.

Suzume never knew why her mother chose him. There were always the stories of the great magical power inherent in the Belnades family, but there could have been someone more qualified...

Her attention snapped back to the present. Marcus was shouting out orders to the armored clerics who had accompanied him. "You two, move her back out to the courtyard. You," he said, pointing to Samuel, "make sure she has enough to eat. The rest of you, come with me. We need to seal off this entrance. We don't want them to ambush us again."

Suzume smiled weakly. "Marcus... thank you."

He turned to her and smiled. "No problem, my lady." Then, after a brief pause, he resumed his trip into the depths of the castle, accompanied by many armed men.

She watched the doors close behind him and sighed. If nothing else, he truly believed in her best interests...

Her thoughts were interrupted by Samuel's arrival. "I'm so sorry, Miss Belnades! I shouldn't have left you there alone! I should have stayed to help you! I should have made sure you were following me! Something! Anything but leave you there alone to be attacked by..."

"Who were those vampires?" Suzume asked. "I'm not a novice! I should have been able to at least hurt them! And what stunt were they trying to pull, leaving the gates open and standing guard when it's broad daylight out?"

"I don't know", Samuel replied, bringing her what appeared to be a leg of duck. "Perhaps we were still weary from our journey."

"And that man..." Her thoughts trailed off as she began to eat. It was a quiet moment, and for a few minutes, she was able to temporarily forget that she had almost single-handedly ruined the entire mission.

* * *

Two of the clerics returned later to guard the courtyard from the other end. Samuel was asked to join Marcus's group, one of them said. As the various other people reorganized, Suzume became woefully aware that she wasn't part of the process. She was guarded, yes, but she had no companions. She was not contributing. She was alone.

"Your name is Suzume?"

Suzume looked up quickly. None of the clergymen had returned yet. Instead, she was surprised to see the red-headed man from earlier, standing near the wall of the castle proper.

"Come with me. I would like to speak with you."

She stood and approached cautiously. "Are you a vampire?" she felt the need to ask.

"I promise you that I am not. I seek to destroy the vampires, like you."

Her immediate fear alleviated, she approached his position, eyeing him cautiously. The man looked to be several years older than herself. His hair was as bright as she remembered, and she could see now that he kept it tied in a ponytail behind his back. His dark grey cloak fit him loosely, with sleeves that only stretched to his elbows, and she could see the plated armor that he wore underneath it. His legs were completely covered in armor, and his arms, while not wearing gauntlets, were equipped with armguards. He certainly had the equipment of a warrior, she decided, even if one that hadn't been seen in the world in a few centuries. Oddly, the only weapon he carried was a quarterstaff that he held in his left hand.

"How did you get here?" she asked.

The man turned his head to the wall behind him. "There is a hidden passage here that leads into the castle dungeons. Follow me and I will show you."

"But... why? Who are you?"

He looked at her impassively. "My name is not important. This is the time for action, not introduction."

She crossed her arms. "If you won't tell me, I won't come with you."

He eyed her sternly. "If I give you a name, will it truly prove me to be your ally? I believe that we are defined by what we do, not by what we say." As she was about to protest, he continued. "If you cannot accept this, you may call me Gregor."

She nervously shook her head. "I didn't... I mean no disrespect. So Gregor, then."

He turned his head to face the gateway that led to the drawbridge, and the two men standing guard there. "These men may be able to stop the weakest of the creatures here, but they are no match for the true danger within. If you wish to stand a chance, I believe that it is in your best interest to assist me."

"And what is your business here, Mr. Gregor?"

"I am a warrior in servitude. To fulfill the wishes of my employer, I have come here to destroy the inhabitants of this castle."

He knows something, she thought. "The inhabitants? From what I've seen, there are vampires inside, and I do not believe they can be defeated with a staff."

"I assure you that I am quite capable in combat and am properly equipped to defeat vampires. However," he said with some hesitation, "not even I may be able to stand up to the power of Dracula without help."

Suzume's eyes widened. "Dracula? He's back? I thought he was..."

"No", Gregor interrupted. "He has not returned. It is unfortunate, as I ventured to this castle intending to confront him directly."

"But you said..."

"The vampires of this castle serve a master. From what I have witnessed, the master uses the power of Dracula, but not his methods. I am ill equipped to destroy him, and this is why I must humbly request your assistance." As he finished his sentence, he gave her a polite bow.

She looked around warily. "It'd be better to ask the church. I'm just one priestess."

He gazed into her eyes, reciting as if from a book. "In centuries past, there have been many warriors who sought to destroy Dracula and the minions he possessed. The Belmonts, they were called. And yet, in times of trouble, they often found their efforts insufficient to defeat the menace, so they turned to allies in their time of need. And few families rose to the occasion more often than the witches of the Belnades clan.

"You must be aware of the importance of your lineage. As a Belnades, you possess a holy power considerably stronger than that of the others who have come here. You have not perfected it yet, but when you realize your potential, you and I may be able to stand a chance."

She just stared at him. Then she lowered her head sadly. "Reputation or not, I don't know if I can help you. You saw how I almost got myself killed just now. I couldn't even defeat..."

"Take this staff."

As she looked up, she saw the quarterstaff being thrust in her direction. "What is this for?" she asked.

"Spells take time to cast, and holy power is not always the best option. One should never go into battle without knowing how to wield a weapon."

"But I've never used a..." She paused. She hadn't, had she? She remembered back to her battle with the vampires. Even after one of them had proved himself nearly immune to her holy power, she had gone for another such strike, because she simply had no other options at the time...

"...yes. I will try it." With some hesitation, she took the staff from his hand. It was longer than she expected, but not uncomfortably heavy. She would need to learn how to balance and swing it properly, but she could see herself getting used to carrying it around.

Gregor smiled. "If you hone your abilities, you will achieve your goal in time. I believe the creatures in the underground passage would be good practice."

She nodded slowly, and then stopped. "I don't know. Perhaps I shouldn't head back in so soon."

"You will not be able to accomplish anything if you remain here."

"Good point", she acknowledged. "I'll give it another shot."

He bowed again. "Thank you, Suzume. The entrance to the passage should be somewhere in our vicinity."

While Suzume was of the belief that the "false stone" method of concealing a passageway was horribly out of date, it seemed like a rational idea in a castle of this age. It took the pair less than five minutes to find it.

Gregor lifted his staff and turned to her. "I will scout ahead. Please do not forget my request."

Suzume felt the need to bring it up. "Um... your staff..."

"Weapons can be damaged. Those who do not wish to be eliminated from combat are wise to carry a spare." He glanced meaningfully in her direction, and then proceeded ahead.

Suzume followed cautiously, holding her own staff carefully. "Such an earnest man. I hope I don't let him down."


	2. Motive

**Chapter 2: Motive**

As Suzume opened the sliding wall at the opposite side of the passage and stepped forth into the castle dungeons, she came to the sudden realization that Gregor was no longer in front of her.

He had said that he was going to scout, hadn't he? She hadn't exactly realized that he meant she would be left alone, inside enemy lines, armed with nothing but her own magic and a staff.

Just like her ancestor Sypha, huh? She smiled to herself and wielded the staff. It was time to show everyone what she was made of.

As a skeleton approached her, she struck it with the side of her staff, causing it to collapse to the ground. As she watched to see if it would stand again, she noticed two more moving bodies behind her. Acting quickly, she spun around with her staff swinging. Unfortunately, she had misjudged her balance, and the staff struck low, only managing to knock one skeleton down. Compensating, she extended the other end on her next swing, which allowed the third skeleton to easily duck it. Without missing a beat, she turned again to the second skeleton and brought the end of the staff down upon its head, shattering it. And with only a slight pause afterward, she released the staff with one hand to strike the third skeleton with a blast of holy magic.

The three creatures were weak compared to the threats to come, but Suzume didn't worry too much about it. Fighting these things was starting to become fun.

Sadly, the books she had studied neglected to mention that Sypha had been turned to stone during her adventure, and remained that way until another hero came along to rescue her. It was just as well. She needed the confidence.

* * *

After about an hour of exploring, she came to the conclusion that the only remaining route that was not locked and barred was to leave the dungeon and head upstairs to the main hall.

Moving cautiously and quietly, she climbed the steps and attempted to look through the keyhole of the door at the top. It was useless. She couldn't see anything through it.

Moving on to plan B, she opened the door slowly with intent to peek around it. As she did so, the door creaked heavily. As she winced at this error, she noticed that a man in armor was in the room, and he was now looking in her direction. Still, the armor looked to be of the kind worn by members of the church...

She opened the door smoothly this time and stepped through as if she owned the place. "What's the situation?"

"Sister Belnades?" the armored man said in surprise, and then stepped away and turned to look down a hallway near where he had been standing. "Tell Father Williams! We found Sister Belnades!"

Suzume sighed to herself. From their reaction, they had apparently been looking for her. She was likely to be in trouble shortly. Even worse, they were _still_ referring to each other by titles. It was enough to make her roll her eyes.

Marcus showed up shortly afterward. His expression was somewhere between anger and relief. "Suzume! Where have you been! We were worried sick!"

Suzume smiled. "No need to worry about me. I'm feeling much better now."

"Don't ever pull a stunt like that again! We've been looking for you for an hour! I had almost given up hope! We thought one of them killed you!" A bit of hesitation. "...one of them didn't kill you, did they?"

Suzume paused for a moment in confusion before she realized what he was asking. "Nah. No bites. Just a few scratches. Nothing serious. You can check me if you like."

At this rate, she thought, Marcus would draw her into a hug in the next few seconds. Instead, he simply built a small amount of holy power and released it into her. "You shouldn't go running off on your own in a place like this, you know."

"Oh, like you wouldn't?" she replied with a smirk.

Marcus looked at her for a second, and then shook his head. "At the very least, you should have been accompanied."

She nodded. "I was. Some guy named Gregor helped me get inside. You wouldn't happen to know him, would you?"

He thought for a second. "Tell me more about him."

"Well, he... he's got red hair, he's well armored, and he fights with a staff. In fact," she said, gesturing to the staff she still held, "he gave me this one. If you see him, he'll know my name."

He breathed a faint sigh of relief. "In that case, I'll have to thank him for his help." A brief pause. "Did you meet anyone else?"

"Just him, you guys... and a couple of vampires." She looked down sadly. "They're the ones that got me. Gregor says their master wields the power of Dracula."

Marcus looked directly at her in shock. "How does..." Then he calmed slightly. "I fear that he may be correct." A brief pause. "Did I ever tell you why I left?"

"They said you were on a pilgrimage."

"That wasn't entirely true. I was looking for a friend. Someone your mother knows very well. His name is Soma Cruz."

Suzume tried to remember him. She remembered a man with white hair and pale features. He and her mother used to tell stories to each other whenever he was in the area of their church. Nothing romantic between the two, though. He had a girlfriend at home, her mother would always say. "I think I've met him. Mother said she used to aid him in battle, as well as try to protect him with her life. If I'm thinking of the right guy, he was..."

The pieces started to fall together for her. She finished the sentence in what was almost a whisper. "...she said he was once the bearer of Dracula's power."

"He still is, as far as I know. I've never been sure just how closely tied he is to Dracula. A few of us were worried that he might be the dark lord reborn. After some analysis, we find this to be unlikely. But still..."

"At the very least", Suzume considered, "we can be sure that he and Dracula's power are never far apart."

"Anyway, I was headed to this castle when I met up with the other group. They told me you were here. I told them that... I think Soma is here as well."

"What? Soma's here? We need to find him!"

"No!" Marcus tried to calm himself. "Don't you see? The bearer of Dracula's power is here, and there are vampires and undead creatures about, and they've attacked a village!"

Suzume went pale. "You think... damn. We're in trouble, aren't we?"

Marcus nodded. "It's just like all the old stories. Dracula may have returned."

"Then the vampires here are..." Suzume hesitated. "No. Gregor said that Dracula has not returned. Is there another possible explanation?"

"Um... not one I can think of, no." He looked at her suspiciously. "Just how much does this guy know?"

Suzume shrugged. "I don't know. But I intend to find out. I'm going to look for him. Maybe he can fill in the gaps."

"Are you sure? With those vampires..."

"I don't think we came here ready to fight Dracula. We need help, and he might be the one to give it to us. It's worth a try."

Marcus nodded slowly, and then smiled. "You're as confident as when you were young. But do not forget that help is there when you need it."

She smiled in return. "I won't. Thank you, Marcus." With that, she turned to head down one of the hallways.

"Wait", he said. She turned around again, to find a rosary being held in her direction. "Take this with you. It may help. I have a spare."

Suzume took the cross and placed it around her neck. "Thank you again."

Marcus turned back to the original hallway. "We're almost done sanctifying this area. It'll give us a base of operations. If you run into any trouble, head directly back here." He paused for a moment, and then pulled her into an embrace. "And please, whatever you do, don't die."

* * *

This hallway was guarded a little more heavily than the dungeons. Suzume found herself struggling more often, but she still managed to leave a wake of dead undead behind her. If anything else, she thought, she felt like she was getting somewhat better at fighting like this.

Still, as she approached an open room that looked like a dining hall, she couldn't help but feel some kind of premonition, as if something bad was about to happen to her. It made her feel more nervous than usual.

Deciding to face it head on, she charged into the next room. Nothing. No demons or vampires waiting to surprise her. Just a dining hall, currently unfurnished, with exits in several directions.

The sound of fighting came from one of them. She headed in that direction and looked around the corner to find Gregor finishing off what looked like an oversized suit of armor. His form was good if awkward, as it appeared like he was landing blows with intent to reposition the opponent in the prime spot for a final strike.

His enemy dispatched, he turned to face her. "Greetings again, Suzume."

She decided to remain friendly to him. "Hey there. Did you get a chance to talk to Marcus or the others?"

He looked at her, and then shook his head. "I have yet to meet with any of them again, I am afraid."

"That's too bad." She sighed. "What about Soma?"

Gregor looked at her with surprise in his eyes. "You are a friend of Soma?"

Suzume shrugged. "We've never really talked much, but..."

"I have some unfortunate news." Gregor took a deep breath, possibly to give himself a chance to reconsider his words. Then he looked at her with a guilty look in his eyes. "To properly complete my mission, I must kill him."

She glared at him. "Why?"

"He possesses the power of Dracula. He must be eliminated to ensure that this power is kept out of the hands of anyone else."

She nodded hesitantly. "So that's why you're here." He thought back to what Marcus had said. "Just so I know, is he the master that these vampires spo..."

He interrupted her. "Soma is not the master of this castle." A short pause. "But he retains a dangerous amount of power nonetheless."

"That's no reason to kill him!" Her voice quickly grew angry. "Soma is a person, just like you and..."

"Say what you will. This is not the first time that men have sought to control his power. It is best that we end this here and now."

Suzume had trouble collecting her thoughts in the face of this argument. One kept sticking out in her mind. "But if he dies, Dracula could be reborn!"

"It is quite possible."

She angrily advanced on him. "How can you be so calm about that? People gave their lives to seal him away! If he returns, it could lead to the end of humanity as we know it!"

Gregor nodded slowly. "Perhaps. But by that time, the people will have another champion to defend them. These vampires are attacking people now."

Suzume stopped. The warrior had a point. The Belmonts were the heroes typically sent for in the past when Dracula's forces emerged. In a few years time, one would be ready to take up the whip again. But for the moment, no heir of proper age was available. Suzume and the rest of the church needed to act, and they needed all the help they could get.

His next words echoed her thoughts. "Did you not come here to stop them from making everyone suffer? I believe that you can accomplish your goal. I am willing to assist you."

Suzume sighed in defeat. "But... to kill an innocent man... why does it have to come to this?"

"The conflict between good and evil is nothing less than a holy war, Miss Belnades." Gregor gazed off into the distance. "When Dracula enters the fray, death is a certainty."

"Are you sure that there is no other way?"

"Many other methods have been attempted. All have failed."

Suzume grumbled to herself. This day was turning out far worse than she had initially planned. Several hours ago, she had thought that she could solve the world's problems by herself. And now she was being told that, to save humanity, she had to end the life of a man who deserved no such fate...

"You seem awfully sure about this. How much do..."

Gregor cut her off. "You are clearly reluctant. You need not decide right away. It is not yet the moment to act." He looked back at the hallway from which he entered. "Continue your training and think about your decision. I will ask you again when I need you." And, without another word, he headed back down the hallway from which he entered.

Suzume could only stare after him. "Wow. I know he's seen his share of battles, but..."

* * *

An hour later, Suzume finally returned to the safe area, tightly holding her left shoulder with her right hand. The lesson was true enough, but she hated learning it. When you meet an opponent who is as skilled as you are, you can win, but you will feel the effects of your victory long afterward.

Her opponent of choice was an axe-wielding minotaur. Her first mistake, in hindsight, was attempting to block a large axe with a quarterstaff. It didn't break, sure, but she was knocked off balance and the bull was quick to capitalize. She almost dodged the follow-up strike, and her shoulder was looking pretty bad for it. Not to mention the multiple knee and hoof strikes she suffered before she discovered how useful fire was in that situation. She had to agree with the earlier speech. Holy power was not always the best method.

None of the clerics were around. Worse yet, she could smell the blood.

She checked some of the rooms in the area. Most were empty. In a couple of the chambers, there was a pool of blood on the ground; evidence that someone had, in fact, lost a battle. Some of the pools had streaks, suggesting that the bodies had been moved afterward. One left a trail of dripping blood behind. Acting quickly, she followed the red spots.

It was on this path that she heard what sounded like furniture shaking. By following the sound, she located the source in a small darkened room on the second floor of the castle. Samuel had been tied to a chair, and he was doing his best to undo his bonds.

He looked up and saw her standing in the doorway. "Miss Belnades!" he shouted in a cheerful voice. "You came to rescue me!"

She winced once again at the use of the title, but recovered. "Where are the vampires?"

He considered for a moment. "I haven't seen them lately."

Suzume nodded and entered the room. "What happened? How did the others fall? Last I heard, they were sanctifying the..."

A female voice interrupted. "Just because you can't see someone doesn't mean no one is there."

Two figures moved from the corners of the room nearest the door, where light from the outer hallway did not reach. One headed directly to the door to close and bar it, leaving the room in complete darkness. The other drew a sword and struck down the young priest in a single swing. He barely had time to scream before he was silenced.

Suzume cursed to herself as she found herself held once again, this time by what felt like the more female of the two.

"Your plan paid off", the male vampire said. "Good thinking."

"Thank you", replied the female voice behind Suzume's head. "What do you think we should do with this one?"

"Let me at her. I can finish her with no problem, just like the others."

Suzume could hear a head shaking behind her. "You say that, and yet you completely failed to kill her last time."

The male's voice seemed insistent now. "It was not my doing. _He_ got in the way."

There was a pause in the conversation. Suzume felt the need to interrupt it. "He?"

"It's obvious that he won't let anything happen to her", the female finally responded. "What do you say we prepare him a little surprise?"

"Are you sure about this? We may be a bit outmatched."

"You know our master won't forgive us if we allow him to intervene. It's high time we took the fight to him. Dracula's power should be enough to subdue him, and then he will no longer pose a threat to any of us."

Suzume, who had been frustrated by the situation in general, finally couldn't resist any longer. "Using Dracula's power? You jackasses! No wonder Gregor wants to keep it out of your hands!"

A short pause. Then the male spoke. "Who?"

The female's voice moved directly next to Suzume's ear. "Trust me, dear. You do not want to stand in the way of our master's plan. Once it is complete, your suffering will be over."

Suzume tried to move her head in an effort to strike her captor. She failed to hit anything. "I don't think so. I was sent here to stop you. I'm not giving up. There will be no more victims like the villagers."

The male voice snickered. "You're certainly not doing a good..."

"Wait." The female's voice was uneasy now. "How did you find out about that?"

"You don't know? The streets were covered in bodies! How could anyone _not_ notice a bloodbath like that? Not many survived, but I'm sure those few will rest easier as soon as..."

Suzume suddenly found herself off balance and stumbling to the side of the room. The female was clearly angry about something.

"You told me we left no survivors!"

"I counted." The man's voice was insistent. "Every person in the village was slaughtered." A brief pause. "Maybe he..."

Suzume couldn't help but smile at this. "I guess you're not as smart as you thought, huh?"

The man's voice grew livid. "Why, you..."

There was a sound of metal, and then Suzume felt nothing but pain and discomfort in her chest again. She fell to the ground, feeling the combined textures of stone and blood. As she wondered if she had goaded them too far, she quickly lost consciousness.


	3. Savior

**Chapter 3: Savior**

Suzume awoke to the sound of a battle.

Unfortunately, she was unable to wake to anything else. The area around her was too dark for her to see. The air smelled heavily of blood, and the ground beneath her still felt like it was covered in the stuff.

"Hello?" she ventured.

No reply. Either she wasn't being guarded, or the guards found it necessary to remain silent.

"Hey! Just because you're vampires doesn't mean you can leave me in the dark like this!"

When this also failed to receive a reply, she sat up weakly and grumbled to herself. If she was fortunate, her eyes might adjust, she thought.

Outside, the sounds of the struggle continued. To Suzume's ears, it sounded rather... simple. There was no sound of metal, or of magic being cast. Just the roars of the undead and the sound of blunt trauma and injury. As Suzume tried to pick up on more details, she considered that if there was a battle occurring, then there was a good chance that someone out there could be on her side.

She raised her voice as loud as she could manage. "I'm still alive! I'm in here! Someone help me!" Normally she would have hated to sound so helpless, but in her situation, she thought, she'd appreciate any help that she could get.

When this met with no reply, she sighed to herself and felt around her position for anything that she could use as a weapon, or that would make a loud noise. In only a few seconds, she had located one of the walls. As she turned around and stretched out her arms to feel for anything else, she saw the bright light in front of her and recoiled immediately.

Then all was brightness, as part of the room caught fire. After a few seconds of pain as her eyes adjusted to the change, she opened them to find that the flames were restricted to what appeared to be wooden furniture. She winced. If she had been thinking straight, and perhaps a little more reckless, she could have easily started such a fire herself.

Now that she had a good view of her surroundings, she looked at them. She was in one of what appeared to be a pair of small prison cells, and the door to her cell was still open. The neighboring cell was completely empty. Outside the cell, some chairs and a table had been overturned, and indeed it was the table that was currently ablaze. The body of what appeared to be an oversized zombie lay on the floor, decomposing. The obvious cause of death: a lengthy spear with a shaft made of some kind of light-colored non-metallic material, which had yet to be removed from the body.

She prepared to stand up, only to stagger in pain. Looking down at herself, she noticed that her chest still showed the remnants of several sword slashes. Even worse, she was still bleeding from them. It looked far worse than it felt, but this fact was not much comfort..

Thinking quickly, she tore some lengths of cloth from her outfit and pressed them against the wounds as tightly as she could manage. She didn't have anything long enough to tie around them, so she held them in place as she moved toward the entrance of the room to figure out her next actions.

After a moment of thought, she returned to the dead creature's body and tried to remove the spear. When it failed to budge, she charged up a quick blast of holy magic and struck the deceased beast with it, destroying its remains. This allowed her to lift the weapon, revealing the metallic three-pronged tip that had previously been buried in its opponent, and test its weight in her hands. Always carry a weapon, Gregor had said.

As she followed a short hallway out of the cell area, she noticed that she was currently in what appeared to be a tower. A spiraling staircase wrapped around the outside of the structure, with small alcoves leading to rooms like the one in which she had been kept.

Looking up, she finally saw the battle that she had heard earlier. A group of undead creatures were bunched in a group, and they seemed to be ganging up on...

...each other? As Suzume watched, it became more apparent that there was infighting within the group. A spear-wielding suit of armor attempted to swing its weapon at a winged gargoyle, which ducked and swung its claws at a zombie, which knocked it into the body of a skeleton. Recovering, it threw a bone in the general direction of the other fighters, striking a small winged demon, who chattered angrily in pain as it...

Suzume left the battle behind. It was better not to get involved. Instead, she headed down the stairs, trying her hardest not to trip and fall. As she reached the level of each room, she checked it for activity.

The first room was empty. The second room, while also empty, contained a few furnishings and a window to the outside. Looking out the window, she could tell that it was not yet dark, but it was getting close to sunset. She also took a bedsheet and ripped it apart with her spear, then used the straps to bind her wounds as best as she could.

Feeling better about her condition, if not stronger, she continued down the staircase. This section of the castle was not strongly guarded. That, she thought, or perhaps the fight behind her held the attention of the local inhabitants. If she hurried, she might be able to get to the bottom, where...

...where what? She hadn't forgotten what happened. Samuel was dead. All of them were, most likely. The vampires had struck, and none of the clerics had stood any kind of chance. At this rate, she might be alone in the castle, with no chance of escape or survival.

She tried to get such thoughts out of her head. She wasn't going to let this setback keep her from doing her job. She was going to stop these abominations by any means necessary, and she would not stop until she couldn't go any further. It was the least that was expected of her.

Still, that feeling of foreboding refused to go away. Ignoring it as much as possible, she continued down the stairs. It would not be much longer until...

...voices?

She stopped just before the next doorway and listened. It sounded like the voices of two men, and the tones of voice suggested that they were not being friendly to each other. Curious, she entered the doorway and tried to make out what they were saying.

"...bastard."

"Do not think that your master will succeed in his plan. The power of Dracula is not your plaything." That was Gregor, Suzume realized.

"You'd like us to give it up, wouldn't you?" That sounded like the vampire from earlier. "Anything to make it easier for..."

"Your former bait is here", Gregor interrupted. "Please show her some respect."

Suzume winced. She still hadn't mastered the art of moving silently. With no further reason to resist, she walked into the room, where she saw what appeared to be Gregor pinning the vampire against the floor with his staff. She couldn't make out his face, but from this angle, she could see the ponytail easily as it rested against the unworn hood of his outer cloak.

The vampire looked directly at her. "It wasn't my intent to hurt her. I mean it!"

The redhead shook his head. "Were you not the one who administered the final blow? Allow me to offer you the same greeting!" He lifted his quarterstaff above his head and swung it in an arc at the vampire.

"Since when do..." The vampire's voice was cut off as the staff struck its target, and the vampire's body suddenly collapsed and turned into ash. Suzume could only be astonished. He wasn't kidding when he said that he had everything he needed to fight the vampires.

His battle concluded, Gregor turned to face her with a look of concern. "I see that you have awakened. Are your injuries causing you discomfort?"

Suzume pressed her hand against her chest to check. "I feel faint, but it doesn't hurt too much."

Gregor frowned. "You have an unfortunate tendency to get caught in their ambushes. Are you aware that I have prevented your death twice now?"

Suzume thought about this. She had met the vampires earlier, and this same vampire had stabbed her, and they were gone when she awakened, and he had been standing there. It made sense. "So you saved me the first time, too."

"Have you realized the danger in which these people have put you and everyone else? Will you assist me now?"

It's a bit late for that speech, she grumbled to herself. Maybe if she had been more accepting of his offer, everyone else's life could have been saved. But still... she needed to be sure that no more villagers would die...

It still didn't answer her immediate question. "How could you possibly need my help? You took him out like he was nothing!"

"Indeed, I am more than a match for the lesser pawns. But their master is considerably stronger, and he may send a stronger army yet. We must hurry."

She nodded. "I'll gladly help you kill these abominations." She paused, remembering something. "But..."

"Why do you hesitate?"

"I still don't think that Soma deserves to die!" she responded angrily.

Gregor sighed to himself impatiently. "Criticize my methods or my motive as you wish. Have you not noticed that you are helpless here without my aid?"

"But what about my training?" Suzume looked down at her spear. It was not the staff that she had been using, but still...

He glared at her. "It is of no value if you will not apply it when the time comes."

Suzume sighed. He was right, as usual. In the face of all the death she had witnessed, and the threat of more in the future, the life of one man seemed almost inconsequential. But, at the same time, Dracula...

"I... don't know. I'm still not ready..."

Gregor nodded. "Of course you are not. You are in need of healing." He turned toward the exit. "Where are those clergymen with whom you traveled?"

"The vampires attacked", Suzume responded sadly. "They're all dead. I couldn't..."

"I know that at least one survives", he interrupted. "Find him quickly, then return. I will be waiting."

She looked up at him with a gleam of hope in her eyes. However, it was quickly replaced by a look of suspicion. "If you know this, then why can't you find him?"

"What?" He sounded surprised.

"Honestly! It feels like you've been avoiding my friends ever since we got here!"

Rather than react to this, he turned to the doorway again. "I did not come here alone, Suzume. I have my own allies, and you have yet to meet with any of them."

Her expression did not change. "You never mentioned them."

"You are not alone. You never were. In times like these, there are many who seek to aid you. As soon as you realize this, you will become stronger." He turned to her again. "Now hurry!"

She nodded and headed out the door and down the stairs as quickly as she could safely manage. As she looked back, she saw him heading up the stairs to the top of the tower.

* * *

The bottom of the tower connected to some of the hallways that Suzume had traveled before. Using her spear carefully to dispatch the surviving undead creatures that had returned to the area, she started looking for any signs of survivors.

It didn't take long. When she returned to the dining hall, Marcus was sitting at the table, staring at the wall with his hands folded in front of him, his eyes showing no signs of happiness. His staff was placed on the table next to him. To her eyes, he looked like a man who had completely run out of hope.

"Marcus! You're alive!" she shouted as she moved to greet him.

He turned his head to look at her, and then winced immediately. "You've been wounded again!"

She nodded. "The vampires got everyone. Can you see if I've been bitten?"

He stood slowly. "Let me check." Picking up his staff, he started moving it in front of her body as he mumbled some ancient words. "...no, that doesn't seem to be the case."

She breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't. "What about your other wounds?" he asked.

She put on her best guilty yet sympathetic expression. "I guess I'm not as good at handling danger as I thought. But I should be fine if you're here, right?"

He looked at her carefully. "No. You're fortunate to be alive at all. This looks more severe than anything I can cure."

She looked down at the injuries, then back at him in surprise. "What? But you're the best healer I know!"

He sighed. "I only have limited power. Even if I use my full strength, your wounds will still reopen afterward."

"So that's it, then?" she asked incredulously. "I'm supposed to lie down and die right here? I haven't given up yet, and neither should you!"

He looked at her for a few seconds. Her face was completely serious. Even with her injuries, she refused to show weakness. And the spear in her hand... she looked like she meant business.

"There... may be another way", he said reluctantly. "You're a Belnades. From everything I've heard and seen, someone of your lineage should be able to use a healing spell without any problems. If I teach you the spell, and if we cast it at the same time, you might be able to recover."

She seemed almost joyful at the prospect. "You're gonna teach me how to heal? That's great! I'd love to learn it!"

He was not as enthusiastic. "Suzume, listen to me."

She stopped. "Yes?

"Do not let anyone know that I taught you how to do this. At all."

The way he was speaking was new to Suzume. It scared her. "Why? Is this... this isn't a forbidden art, is it?"

Marcus shook his head. "No. Not at all. But there are many who would hound me if they knew."

She nodded her head. "I understand. I won't tell anyone. I promise."

He smiled for the first time in the conversation, and then led her to the side. He looked around to make sure that no one was watching, and then held out his hand and began to gather power. Suzume had seen this motion once before. A circular motion, then the tracing of a pentagram in the middle, and then pressing his hand through the design.

She mimicked the motion, only for him to grab her hand. "Summon the holy power first. Remember to move your hand counterclockwise, and trace the star down to the left first."

She was used to his teaching method, and had no complaints restarting whenever he interrupted her. The two practiced for a fair amount of time. About thirty minutes later, she felt like she was actually capable of channeling the power in the way he had suggested.

He stood close to her again. "Now, as you cast this, you need to mirror the motion as if you were casting it backward. You will want to lay the hand on yourself, after all."

She nodded. She could do this. She had faith in herself, and so did he. The two began charging their power simultaneously. The two patterns were nearly perfect, and she had no trouble pulling her hand toward herself at the same time as he pushed his own hand against her chest. The warmth was considerably hotter than the previous times, and it almost felt like it was burning her, but the moment passed and she found herself feeling considerably better than before.

She checked underneath her makeshift bandages, satisfied that they no longer needed to be in place, then smiled at Marcus. "Thank you very much for that. I will put it to good use."

Marcus nodded in affirmation. "You are talented and strong, Suzume, but you must remember to be cautious. Those injuries could have been the end of you."

"I understand. Listen, I need to find Gregor again. We should go meet him together."

"You mentioned him before", he noted. "Are you sure you can trust him?"

She nodded. "Absolutely. I've seen him beat a few vampires. He's saved my life twice now. He's definitely looking out for me. I mean, he suggested I find you as soon as he saw I was injured."

"He did." He was almost talking to himself.

"Come on. He's up in the tower. I'll show you the way." And she turned and headed for the door.

Marcus didn't follow her. He was too busy mumbling to himself. "...no... he didn't... did he..."

She turned to face him. "Are you coming?"

He suddenly looked up with a frightened expression on his face. "How long have you been talking to him?"

"Oh, I first met him before you showed up."

"When you arrived, or when you were injured?"

She thought quickly. "It was right after the vampires..."

"Dammit!" he swore. "I should have seen it sooner!"

Suzume blinked. "What's the deal?"

He was frantic now. "Look around us, Suzume! All the clerics, Samuel... they're all dead! There's a reason why we're still alive, and I'm pretty sure it's him!"

"Yeah", she responded. "I already said he saved me."

"Why do you think he did that?"

"He said he wants me to help him kill the vampires." She remembered the other bit. "And Soma."

He nodded. "So he told you. Have you thought about why he'd want to do that?"

"He said it was to stop them from using Dracula's power."

"Naturally. But wouldn't doing that also bring Dracula back?"

"Eventually", she said hesitantly. "Possibly. He admitted as much."

He threw down his hands angrily. "At least he's still as honest as ever. Suzume, I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but Gregor isn't who you think he is."

She was starting to become frightened by Marcus's demeanor. "What do you mean? I know he's not a vampire! I'd be able to tell!"

"You're right. He's not a vampire." He took a deep breath. "That's the problem. We can kill vampires. Especially when he wants us to do so."

"So what you're saying is that he's..."

Suzume trailed off. She hadn't considered the possibility before. There was no reason to do so before. But now that she had thought about it, that theory neatly explained everything.

Marcus noted her stunned expression immediately. "I think you've caught on. Do not talk to him again."

The truth sounded so wrong to her, and yet so accurate. It even fit every part of his story, now that she thought about it. Except for a few parts he hadn't explained...

But...

She cleared her throat a bit before she spoke. "I'm not sure I can do that."

Marcus looked at her in surprise. "Suzume, I mean it."

"He's helped me too much already. If not for him, I'd be dead and the vampires would have won."

He winced. "So it is too late for you after all. Dammit."

"We didn't come here to stop Dracula from returning, you know. We came here to stop the vampires from attacking everyone. And we know that he has the same goal."

"Listen to yourself, Suzume! You can't trust him!"

Now it was her turn to take the deep breath. "We don't know that. And that's why I must talk to him again."

Despite his angry expression, he sighed. "You know, and yet you persist. I guess this means I can't convince you otherwise."

She placed her hand on his shoulder and smiled at him. "At this point, he may be our only chance to succeed. If I do this right, we'll be a lot better off. Trust me on this." And, having said this, she headed back in the direction of the tower.

Marcus stared after her. "I trust your heart. It's your judgment I worry about."

* * *

By the time Suzume reached the top of the tower, the sun was visibly setting on the horizon. From here, she could see several other towers that made up the upper structure of the castle. Gregor was staring out the window.

She had expected him to be up here. Not only because she had seen him move in this direction before, but also because she felt that same foreboding feeling that she had felt several times before. When she understood why it was there, it almost felt like the spiritual version of a metal detector.

"I intend to start the mission as soon as night has fallen", Gregor said without turning to face her. "The cover of darkness will give us an advantage." A brief pause. "You appear to have recovered. Are you prepared to..."

"I know who you are."

There was a lengthy pause. Then Gregor turned to face her impassively. He watched her carefully for several more seconds as she continued to glare at him. Then he spoke again. "Judging by your expression, you do."

She walked toward him angrily. "I died when I first met those vampires, didn't I?"

"Yes."

"And yet you allowed me to live. Twice now. Do you really consider me that important to your mission?"

Gregor nodded. "The power of Dracula is an unholy power. Even now that I can intervene, I am unable to stop it. I can only stop those that wield it."

She crossed her arms. "And that's the only reason?"

He sighed. "It is also my conclusion that Soma will not hurt anyone who he considers a friend. This weakness can be used against him when the time comes."

She shook her head in disgust. "I don't know if I'm insulted or flattered. I am a priestess of the church, being asked to kill one of my family's closest allies to unleash the unholy bane of humanity, and I'm being asked directly by one of the most powerful forces of nature in existence."

He paused for only a second to think about her words. "That is accurate."

"You deceived me! You wanted to use me..."

"I have yet to speak a lie", he interrupted.

She stopped in the middle of her rant. "And just how do you figure that?"

"I told you what my mission entails. I told you why I am doing it, as well as the methods that I intend to use. Nothing I have said has changed. And I cannot accomplish this without your help."

She didn't back down. "You were pretty damn manipulative about it. I mean, Gregor?"

"At no point did I claim it to be my name."

_I believe that we are defined by what we do, not by what we say._ He had said that, she remembered. And it was especially true in his case.

Given her hesitation, he opted to continue. "Your criticisms change nothing. You still require my help."

She recovered. "Don't you even start with..."

"These vampires are not merely followers of Dracula who desired his power. You may not be able to tell, but all of them are former clergy."

This was new to her. "You're sure? They're from the church?"

Gregor nodded. "They wield holy magic as well as dark power. And they have repeatedly proven themselves more than a match for your novice offense."

He had been right all along, Suzume considered. And what's worse, he is still right, even now that I know what he is, and what his true intentions are...

She lowered her arms in defeat. "I know this. And that is why I'm almost ready to help you anyway."

He raised an eyebrow. "Almost?"

She looked him in the eyes. "I need to know that I can trust you."

He shook his head. "Trust is irrelevant. You need me, and I need you. That is all that matters."

"And what will happen to me when we're done?"

He glanced at his staff. "Your soul belongs to me. I will claim it again when the task is complete."

"Wrong answer", she said in a contemptuous voice. "I am not your pawn. Not anymore."

His expression remained calm. "You wish to allow more innocent villagers to die."

"Compared to what Dracula can do..."

Gregor looked at her inquisitively. "Would you have accepted his return if you had lived?"

Suzume paused, remembering his words from earlier. "You were right before. It's better to kill the vampires now and risk Dracula's return later than to let the vampires remain loose. A hero will come someday, you said."

"Why should you believe that this will be any different in the face of death?"

She glared at him. "It isn't. But it's hardly worth it to figure out which choice results in fewer deaths if neither will save me."

He leveled his eyes at her and shook his head in contempt. "You are an incredibly selfish human."

"I'm not the selfish one here!" she snapped. "You're the one acting like you've got all the cards! You've only got half of them and you need my half! So quit jerking me around! Got it?"

Gregor's voice was livid now. "How dare you speak to me in that manner? I can extinguish your meager existence on a whim!"

"And then you'll never see your lord again!" Suzume screamed.

Both fell silent. Through the window behind Gregor, the sun had almost completely set.

Gregor finally spoke again in his usual stoic voice. "Very well. I am open to negotiation."

Suzume took a breath to calm herself. "I'll help you destroy the master of this castle. I have no problem with that. But after this is over, I want to live."

He looked at her sternly. "Understand that the fact that you breathe even now is more than most mortals should ever expect. I refuse to allow you to take this generosity for granted."

"So what would be acceptable for you?"

He stood in thought for a moment. "Choosing to assist me would prove that you deserve another chance. I can do that much for you." He returned his gaze to her. "But only under the condition that I regain your soul if you happen to die again."

"That's not too comforting."

"I am not going to kill you in an effort to reclaim it."

"Good, but that's not what I meant," she replied. "Look at my track record. It's too easy to die around here."

"Perhaps you should be more careful."

She crossed her arms. "Try harder."

He paused, and then nodded. "Very well. I shall also make an effort to protect you."

"Just you?" she asked suspiciously. She remembered what he had said earlier...

"The same effort will be made by my servants."

She nodded. "Okay. That, I'll agree..."

"But in return, you must help me kill Soma Cruz."

She closed her eyes. "Soma..."

"You are hesitating."

She looked at him again. "I'm not willing to kill him."

He glared at her. "You know why I am here. If he does not die, my goal will be unfulfilled. In light of this, there will be no reason for me to assist you at all."

"We wouldn't want that", she muttered to herself. Then, in a more audible voice, she continued. "You're sure he's not one of the killers?"

Gregor shook his head. "It is my understanding that he is a prisoner. It is entirely possible that he may be dead by the time we find him."

"And if he isn't?"

He looked at his staff briefly. "Using his awakened power goes against the natural order. I am within my rights to eliminate him, whether you assist me or not."

She paused to digest this, and then asked hesitantly. "In that case, will it be enough if I promise to not get in your way?"

"That... should be sufficient", he decided. "Are those all of the terms?"

Suzume thought about this briefly. This was almost what she was going to agree to originally, but certain revelations had made her reconsider. As far as she knew, there were only a couple more things she felt needed to be addressed. "Two more things, and I don't think you'll have a problem with them."

"We shall see."

She started with the easy one. "You said that you didn't come alone, and I suspect your friends have assisted me a few times. If I help you, I want them to drop the hiding act. There's no reason for it anymore."

Gregor didn't hesitate at all. "I accept this. They will do so as well."

Now, the hard one. "And if you really want me to agree to this deal, you've gotta drop the pretense. I have to trust you completely."

He looked at her with a small amount of confusion. "Are you absolutely certain that you want this?"

She didn't avert her gaze. "I don't think I've ever been more certain."

He nodded with a fair amount of hesitation. "With this in mind, I feel that we should formalize our agreement."

She nodded as well. "Go ahead."

And then the feeling started to overwhelm her. That feeling of foreboding, always a sinking sensation in her stomach when she had come near him before, now felt like an abyss in the depths of her soul. It screamed out to her. _Don't do this. You know what he is._

Gregor didn't seem to notice. Instead, he lifted the hood of his cloak over his head, turned to face the last few rays of the sun as it passed below the horizon, and began his speech. "Under this pact, we agree to work together to achieve our common goal of eliminating the master of this castle, as well as any other vampires who serve him or share his power. As you suggested, this includes the unambiguous assistance of the minions under my command.

Suzume kept resisting the temptation to relent. Looking at Gregor, she could see that his cloak was starting to billow and lift off the ground. His voice had changed as well, becoming something far more powerful and supernatural.

_This goes against everything you've ever been taught in the church. Stop now._

"Your soul shall be returned to you. In addition, my minions and I will make an active effort, to the full extent of our abilities, to prevent you from being mortally injured during the mission. In the case that you suffer such injuries, I retain the right to intervene and prevent your death, but you will no longer hold any claim to your soul in that event."

_It is better to die. No quantity of villagers is worth what you're about to do._

"In return, upon discovering the entity known as Soma Cruz, I shall be allowed to exercise my right to end his existence. You will not be permitted to interfere with this action or dissuade me from doing so, directly or indirectly."

As he spoke, his quarterstaff rose into the air, lengthening to an even more ranged form. As if to punctuate the last few words, a long curved blade sprouted from one of the ends with a metallic sound.

_Even Marcus thinks this is a bad idea. He taught you everything you know. Listen to him._

"Finally, as per your request, I vow that I will not deliberately mislead you in any manner. Any information that you receive from me will be expressed unambiguously, and I shall not withhold information without sufficient cause, such as information that should not be known to mortals."

_Look at him now. See him for what he is. If you welcome him, you will never be forgiven for it._

She couldn't tell if he was aware of her internal thoughts, but the timing was uncanny. His metamorphosis complete, her associate turned to face her again. He was dressed the same as before, and yet completely differently. The dark grey hooded cloak still covered a sturdy breastplate, but there was no longer any substance below it. Nor any legs. He continued to wear his armguards over his arms, which were otherwise exposed from elbow to fingers... completely exposed, to the bone. And under the hood, the visage of a skull that she had seen in many books.

"This pact shall remain in effect until the time that the vampiric threat is over and Soma is deceased. Failure on your part to uphold your side of the terms will result in the nullification of the criteria of this pact, including any right to your soul that you have been granted."

She had known who he was before she climbed the tower to meet him again, but seeing him now, the significance still struck her as if she hadn't thought about it before. She was actually doing it. The circumstances made it necessary. And yet, beyond her logic, what she was doing was insane.

"For the sake of my mission, I formally agree to these terms. Do you have any remaining complaint with the terms of the pact as they have been stated?"

_Stop stop stop stop stop heathen evil evil stop blasphemer corrupt evil stop stop stop cursed_

She took a deep breath and tried to shut out the thoughts. "...no. I agree to the terms."

"Our pact is formed, Suzume Belnades. This should prove to be interesting."

And there, before her, was his extended arm. Each finger of polished bone, equal in length to the length of her entire hand, pointed toward her. And without daring to hesitate any further, she placed her hand in his and allowed him to grasp it.

The two shook.

_FOOL FOOL DAMNED FOOL CURSED FOOL BURN IN HELL FOOLISH HYPOCRITE_

This was it, Suzume thought. She had made the jump. It may have been the wrong choice. It may have been the only choice. Perhaps it was even her rightful destiny. No matter what, there was no looking back. Now all that was left was to follow the path, wherever it would take her.

She was now allied with Death.


	4. Safety

**Chapter 4: Safety**

Suzume slowly pulled open the door at the end of the hallway that connected the western tower to the top of the castle ramparts. This time, the door was quiet to allow her to see the outside activity without giving away her position.

It was hard to see them against the twilight sky, but there were now creatures on patrol. She couldn't decide if they had appeared once the sun had disappeared from sight, or if they had been positioned there once it became apparent that there were intruders within the castle.

She backed into the passageway again and turned to face her potential benefactor. "I don't see why you can't just make them all crumble to dust or something."

"If it was as simple as you say", Death replied in his distorted monotone, "you would not be standing here with me."

In addition to the regular books used for lessons, the church had contained an extensive library of literature related to religion and history. One shelf in particular was devoted to accounts of the many battles against Dracula and his forces, and her mother had recommended that she read through them when she had a chance. She would be carrying on the Belnades family tradition, after all. To be honest, she never enjoyed those stories, and would frequently move on to more enjoyable activities before long. When all was said and done, she was probably only exposed to half of what that shelf had to offer.

But even the most cursory examination of the texts was enough to paint a vivid picture of the entity known as Death. He was Dracula's right hand man, or demon, or whatever. It was a rare event when a Belmont or other vampire hunter, on his way to defeat the dark lord, would not have to face the grim reaper himself. Some stories suggested that he may have been the overlord of hell, but this could hardly be confirmed by the living. They did, however, point out his incredibly evil nature and his methods of attacking his enemies, as well as some of the schemes he had used over the years to ensure that his master would return to the world of the living, free to use his power to subjugate or destroy humanity.

But now that she was looking at him from less than five feet away, she wasn't sure what to make of him. No matter how many books were on that shelf, the literature only provided one viewpoint of Death: that of his adversaries. Given his well-established purpose, people must have met him under other circumstances; sadly, she realized, those in that situation were in no position to write a book about him.

He was repulsive on an instinctive level. Every action of his suggested a large amount of inherent power behind it. His words were cold and blunt, and it was hard to believe that he cared much for the lives of others. This came as no surprise to her. But after meeting with him repeatedly, some other adjectives came to mind. Calm. Logical. Calculating. While he acted detached from the world around him, he moved and spoke with the confidence of someone who had been there for his entire existence. And despite everything that had happened, or perhaps because of it, he had yet to be unnecessarily cruel to her.

One text had claimed that Dracula called him one of his closest friends. Maybe there was a reason for it, she thought.

Her inner voice continued to chastise her. _He's using you. He would have left you to die if you had let him. All he cares about is the return of Dracula. If his lord returns, you will fall just as quickly as the others, and he will not bat an eye at this._

And the worst part, she noted, was that nothing he had said had ever suggested otherwise.

"Look at the central structure", he said, interrupting her thoughts. "I do not know if you can see it."

She looked through the slightly-opened door again. There were two other towers in this castle, and the central one was by far the largest. It looked as though an additional building had been built on the top of this castle, structurally sound on the bottom with a tower at the top. It was hard to see how far up it extended, partly due to the lack of ambient light and partly because of the hazy glow that surrounded much of the upper structure.

"The glow?" she asked.

"There is a field of holy power surrounding the structure. I am certain that their master stays within its boundary. The field may keep him trapped inside, but it also ensures that I am unable to approach his position."

"While the other vampires do his bidding from outside", she concluded. "He's clever."

"He is not clever enough." Suzume was aware of a flash of light behind her, and turned to locate the source. There was now a blue gargoyle kneeling before Death. It was strongly built, and its lowered arms partially concealed the evidence of leathery wings underneath. If she recalled correctly, it was the same creature that she had seen during her escape, fighting off the other monsters...

Death continued. "Gaibon will serve as reconnaissance. On my command, he will search the tower and locate the position of their master. We will formulate a strategy from there."

As if to acknowledge his orders, Gaibon stood up before his master. As he rose, he noticed Suzume's presence in the room and came to a complete stop, staring at her in surprise.

"The holy field won't stop him?" she asked.

"He has shown no reaction to it. However, his assistance will only be of use if his presence is undetected. We do not want the master to prepare for my arrival." He turned to face her directly. "This is why you will be attacking the guards as a diversion."

She blinked. "Won't this give us away?"

"The master already knows of your presence. If his attention is focused on you, Gaibon will be able to act unimpeded."

"Are you sure? Those two vampires know you're here, too!"

Death shook his head. "One is dead. The other will not be able to report her findings as long as the field is in place."

"The way they talked, it sounded like the master knew you were coming..."

"He did. However, he suspects that I have given up at this time." He may have sighed. "This is not my first attempt."

This is his plan, she thought. He wants to strike at his opponent in secrecy, while making it appear as though a sworn enemy of Dracula was responsible. They would never consider such an alliance possible.

_Alliance? He is sending a mere human into the fray to be torn apart by the enemy, solely to gain a small advantage..._

"...this plan is going to kill me."

"Why did you come here, if you do not believe that you can defeat the undead in battle?" Death asked in an accusatory tone.

Suzume sighed. "It doesn't matter if I've trained or not. They're out in force looking for me. I can't survive long against those odds."

"This is a problem. I usually work with mortals who are at least competent in a fight."

"Well, I'm sorry I don't live up to your expectations!" she groused. "I haven't even been using this damn stick for a day yet!"

He looked her up and down. "You still have your magic ability."

She considered this. "Yeah. I'm pretty good, I'm told. But when they surround me, I won't have enough time to..."

"Then we shall adjust the plan to compensate." A glowing portal covered in arcane symbols appeared on the ground next to her. As she turned to look at it, a pillar of light shot forth from it and bathed the surrounding area in its glow. When the light subsided, there was a skeletal creature standing next to her. It had the head of what appeared to be either a bird or a dinosaur, although unlike the grim reaper, it possessed eyes as well. Upon close examination, the spear it held in its hands bore a great deal of resemblance to the one she had claimed. It looked at Suzume with the same amount of confusion that Gaibon had expressed earlier.

Death continued. "I will send Slogra to aid you in the assault. I trust that your spells will be unhindered if you have a guard?"

Now it was her turn to look confused. "But if anyone sees him, they'll know..."

"I am aware of this problem. The solution is equally straightforward. If you truly wish for me to make this accommodation for you, I must demand that you make one for me as well." He paused for emphasis. "You will need to kill _every demon you see_. Nothing must be allowed to give away my presence."

"That sounds difficult."

"Slogra is efficient. As for you, I assume that your magic tricks are not merely for show."

"I accept this", she said. It was only fair, she thought. Certainly, she preferred the idea of purging this castle of evil to being overcome by the large armies before her.

_And so it begins,_ that inner voice started saying. _You too have become a harbinger of death, sworn to lay to waste everything that exists around you..._

She tried to tune out her paranoia. It was a stupid argument. They were fighting the undead. They deserved this fate.

_You keep doing this. You let Death rationalize everything. You always question him. You never oppose him. And in the end, your only actions are those that he wills. You are nothing more than his crony..._

She started to hold her head. This was stupid! She had formed a pact! _A pact with evil! _It didn't matter! It was necessary! He was living up to it! She should do the same!

_He created this pact for the sole purpose of reviving Dracula. By following it, you are dooming humanity to_

"Carry this."

Suzume refocused her attention to see that his bony hand was holding what looked like a silver coin with a skull in front of her. She took it from him, and then raised her eyes questioningly toward him.

He noticed. "Even living beings are susceptible to holy power. This should act as a defense." A short pause. "It will also serve as a focus, making it easier for me to keep track of your activities. I will not always be able to accompany you."

"Why not?"

"Even during a crisis of this nature, I must fulfill my official duties."

Naturally, she thought. It had always seemed odd to her that Dracula's closest ally happened to be the same entity responsible for claiming the souls of the deceased and leading them to whatever afterlife was appropriate, but no evidence had ever been found to disprove this.

She nodded. "Gotcha." She turned to look at the dinosaur, who appeared to have gotten over his initial surprise and was now stationed near her. "Well... Slogra?... looks like you and I gotta do this alone."

Slogra didn't respond. Before she could say anything, Death spoke again. "He does not speak, but you may rest assured that he understands."

She was turning to look at him again when she noticed that something was odd. He was still staring at her and he had not changed his appearance, but somehow, everything was different. She no longer felt a desire to recoil in terror. There were no voices in her head telling her to abandon him or abandon hope. All that remained was him, ancient and supernatural as he was.

She looked at the coin that she continued to clench in her hand, and pocketed it quickly. If it was responsible for the change, she welcomed it. Mostly. It occurred to her that her paranoid instincts may have been valid.

She looked up at the three demons that surrounded her, and nodded. "I understand. I will not let you down."

"I should hope not", Death replied, and then he vanished from sight. Slogra turned to Gaibon for a moment, then looked back at Suzume, and then walked toward the door to the ramparts.

"You can tell he's seen a lot of wars", she mumbled as she walked through the door after him.

* * *

An axe-wielding suit of armor, a skeleton with a bow, and a winged goat-like demon with a spear were stationed in a small group just around the corner. Suzume pressed herself against the wall, not even daring to take a second look in case she was spotted. Slogra joined her.

After several of these ambushes, the two had started to develop a pattern to their attacks. This would be a straightforward example. Suzume charged magical power in her hand, and Slogra somehow drew power into his spear. She couldn't tell exactly how he did that.

She stepped around the corner and released the spell. The goat found itself surrounded by holy power, closing in and destroying its body slowly. Suzume smiled. It would not require a second spell to finish it. The ones capable of flight were the biggest risk, since they were the ones that could flee the battlefield to inform their superiors of the attack.

The others noticed immediately. The axe wielder charged in while the archer loaded and fired an arrow. Slogra was too quick, though, and released the stored energy in the form of a ball that destroyed the arrow and continued toward the archer, forcing it to dodge. This done, he engaged the armor in direct combat. As both threats had been averted, Suzume now had the opportunity to prepare another spell.

The battle didn't even last a minute.

* * *

Slogra led her down a stairwell and once again into the corridors of the lower castle. She wasn't sure why, although she had decided by this time that he must have been familiar with the castle's layout. That would be Death's doing, she figured. Someone like him would probably know the route through every building on the planet.

Suzume couldn't decide if she liked Slogra or not. Certainly, he was assigned to protect her, and he had been doing an excellent job of it. But that's all it was. A job. He didn't care about her well-being. He only seemed to defer to her actions when it gave him an advantage. The only thing she could count on was that he was single-minded about completing his task.

It was much like his skill at wielding a spear. Although he was clearly an expert with the weapon, a talent that may have compensated for his lack of particularly outstanding demonic abilities, he was overspecialized. Against an opponent who could defend against such sharp strikes, he was nearly useless. Perhaps that's why the Belmonts' stories about him had almost always included Gaibon, she thought. That's probably why Death sent him, too. He had all the attributes of a team player.

There were guard rooms along this corridor. Using similar strategies to before, the two emptied them of their inhabitants, and then moved into a central area of the castle that would take them to the other wing.

One room appeared to be heavily guarded. There was what appeared to be a ditch in the floor, and a large number of archers on the other side. The room had multiple windows, so this room must have been built to allow guards to fire arrows against invaders on the outside of the structure.

She acted quickly, casting a wall of ice on the opposite edge of the ditch. This would keep them pinned on their side as well as block the initial volley. Slogra looked at her briefly and then leapt across the expanse, landing on top of the wall of ice, where he proceeded to engage the enemy in close quarters before they could escape.

Suzume smiled. She was definitely doing her half of the...

"Down here..." a voice called from the depths of the pit.

She recognized it immediately. "Marcus?" she called in a quiet voice.

"Hurry..." was the only reply. She took a closer look at the pit. Fifteen feet at the most. With only a small amount of reluctance, she lowered herself into the pit and then dropped to the floor below.

It looked like some kind of underground passageway, and it was not currently occupied. In the shadows of the room, Marcus sat against the wall, breathing heavily.

It took Suzume only a few seconds to realize why. "You've been bitten!" she gasped. Her hand immediately shot out, preparing to cast the spell that he had taught her not long before.

He shook his head. "There's no need... I can handle it myself..." As he spoke, he raised his hand and did a magical gesture, showing that his holy power had not diminished.

"Where'd they go?"

Marcus looked depressed as he forced out the words.. "Didn't see... I'm sorry... I couldn't let you go with him... alone... I had to do... something... I headed here... the vampires found me... and..."

Suzume blinked. "They didn't kill you?"

"They must have recognized me... from the church..."

She thought about what she had been told earlier. "Gregor... um... Death said these vampires are clergymen. You're saying that's true?"

He nodded. "Not only that... they're members of the church... from the destroyed village..."

Suzume had wondered about that. In a time when the church was actively trying to fight evil, it was odd that none of the dead bodies had been church members, nor had any of the undead attackers been defeated. "So they didn't protect anyone?"

Marcus groaned. "Suzume... I need you to... do something... for me..."

She couldn't take this much longer. "Look, what you need is to get healed!"

"It's working... already... I can feel it... Just... take my staff..."

His staff was resting in the shadows near him, almost unnoticeably. In the current silence, she could hear the battle continuing overhead. Without a word, she reached down and picked it up. While she wasn't an expert at recognizing it, she could feel the holy power flowing through the object.

"It's a holy relic... it strengthens magic... you can use it better than I can." He tried to take a deep breath. "Ah, the spell seems to have kicked in."

She smiled, relief returning to her expression. "The way you sound, you should recover in no time. Are you sure you don't want this back?"

He shook his head. "You're the one who's going to need it." He paused, grimacing. "For now, return to your ally."

Suzume looked at him blankly. "So you know that I agreed to help him."

"I was worried about you", Marcus quickly responded. "I followed you. I overheard everything."

She sighed. "Marcus... I'm sorry..."

"I wish you hadn't done that. There had to be another way. One without so much death."

"I don't want Soma to die, either, but this..."

He glared at her, interrupting. "You're playing right into his hands. You know that."

She shook her head. "These vampires are too strong. You should know that now. At this point, we need every advantage we can get."

"I wouldn't go so far as to call him an advantage", he grumbled.

She looked at him, scratching her head. "You really don't trust him, huh? You've been wary of him ever since..."

She stopped suddenly. All was silence. There were no longer any sounds of battle audible. Marcus looked at her, confused. She had just realized something.

"...no, you were wary of him before he showed up."

"What?" he asked.

"You weren't part of the original team. You told me that. You came here looking for Soma, right?"

He nodded. "Yes, but..."

"Look at what you've done since you got here. You healed me. You sealed the entranceway from evil. You noticed I was missing and demanded a search. You led the others in an attempt to provide a safe haven. And you were practically waiting for me to come back so you could heal me, while others fell in battle and never stood again."

She didn't know if she could be angry about this, but it needed to be said. "No wonder you're only injured now! Until now, you haven't been fighting the undead threat at all! All you've done is try to keep me alive!"

Marcus tried to keep a blank expression. "I'm a healer. It's my purpose in life. And since the vampires never came after me..."

She glared at him. "You're hiding something. What's going on?"

He was about to respond when he looked up and stopped. Suzume noticed and looked upward as well. The silhouette of Slogra was visible at the top of the pit, and he was currently holding his spear in her direction.

"We've spoken too long", he hissed. "Go. Now."

"No! Not until you tell me..."

And he reached out and hugged her. In this situation, she could do nothing more than hug him back. As she did, she heard his voice whisper in her ear. "I'll tell you when I know Death's not around."

As she was released, she looked at him with a confused expression, and then nodded. "...okay." And, without another word, she moved to the side, looked up, jumped and grabbed hold of the end of the spear.

Slogra was considerably stronger than his thin physique suggested, and it wasn't hard at all for him to pull her from the pit. Then he positioned it over solid ground and set her down where she could safely release the weapon.

And then he widened his eyes in surprise and backed away from her, spear at the ready. She wondered why at first, until she remembered that she was holding Marcus's holy staff. Such a tool would definitely be terrifying to demons, she decided.

She held it down at her side and smiled at him. "Relax", she said in her most soothing voice. "I won't use it on you."

With some hesitation, he nodded. A few seconds later, he had returned to his usual emotionless demeanor, and he was leading her to their next destination.

* * *

There was one more room of note on their way up the opposite wing to the other side of the ramparts.

It seemed simple enough. A room with stone walls and flooring, with a number of torture room implements along the walls. Suzume shuddered. This wasn't even part of the dungeon complex. Apparently there was a need for the guards to torture intruders without traveling through the castle.

There were a number of skeletons and zombies in the room. Slogra charged in first to get a quick strike. Suzume began to charge...

The sound of rattling chains could be heard from above.

Suzume looked up. Something large and spiky was bearing down on her from above. Slogra had noticed, and currently had his spear planted on the ground pointing upward. Thinking quickly, she pulled it out and tried the same thing.

It didn't work for her. The spear hadn't been perfectly perpendicular, and it was starting to give. She dove to the side.

That didn't work for her, either. Just before she could clear the trap's range, the spiky crusher came down and landed directly on her right leg. She heard it snap and felt the punctures throughout the limb. Her scream of pain certainly could have attracted most of the undead guards in the area.

As she tried to retain consciousness from the pain and bleeding, she noticed that Slogra had survived the trap. Unfortunately, he did so by placing his spear more accurately so that it would hold up the crusher, thus allowing him to get out of the way.

In other words, he was now unarmed. And the skeletons and zombies were bearing down on him. And behind them, a large red demon was standing by the wall, removing his hand from a large switch. He must have triggered the trap, she thought. Slogra didn't look like a match for him now...

She looked around. While her leg was still trapped, her staff was still at her side. Maybe he could use...

She wasn't thinking straight. That was a holy staff. Giving it to a demon would do him more harm than good. What he needed was...

Her spear was lying underneath the crusher, conveniently not being pinned by the spikes. With some careful motions with her staff, she started trying to bat it toward herself. She had to hurry, before her ally...

She looked up briefly at Slogra to find that he was still trying to hold his own. Using little but his own beak and a few attacks from his limbs, he was fending off the army. It didn't look like he was about to win, but he would last as long as possible.

This called for action. "Get back!" she yelled. Slogra reacted almost immediately to this order, which she had to admit was a great display of his trained discipline. It was certainly useful for her, because it meant she had to wait less than a second before she cast the field of electrical orbs in the direction of the army.

Many of the skeletons crumbled, and some of the zombies were stunned by the current traveling through their bodies. The large demon was out of range and therefore unaffected, but she had bought Slogra more time.

With newfound confidence, she continued to use the staff to move the spear slowly toward herself. Closer. Closer.

There. She grabbed the spear with her other hand and turned her head to watch Slogra strike away at one of the zombies. Once he had caught a glimpse of her, she tossed the spear as well as she could, considering that she was still lying on the ground. He caught it easily, and the battle quickly turned in his favor.

Suzume did her best to support with a few well-timed spells, but he did most of the work. Once it came down to confronting the demon in charge, she found via trial and error that his body was vulnerable to ice, and a few shots of that hurt him and slowed him enough for the final spear strikes.

It was over. They had won, despite all the odds. Slogra pulled the spear from the dead demon and headed to what appeared to be a winch and chain near her position. Several rotations later, the crusher was reset to its untriggered position and she was free.

She lifted herself to her feet, only to collapse immediately in pain. She had heard the snap earlier. Her leg was still twisted and mangled. It was in no condition for walking or supporting her weight. Slogra, who had been freeing his own spear from the other crusher, noticed immediately and started heading in her direction.

"Don't worry", she said calmly. "I can handle this." And, as Slogra watched, she did. Her hand made a clockwise motion and pentagram, specifically done in mirror so that it could be cast on herself, and then she laid her hand on herself. The warmth filled her leg, the bones mended, the blood clotted, and she found herself once again able to bend the knee properly in under a minute. Marcus's spell had paid off yet again.

Standing up, she smiled at Slogra. "That could've gone much worse. Thank you for your help."

He didn't respond visibly. She sighed to herself. Sometimes it was easy to forget that he didn't possess much in terms of social grace and capability.

She looked around. It was rather quiet, and she started to worry. "I hope your friend hasn't gotten into any trouble."

"He has already succeeded in his task."

The voice made her jump. She hadn't heard from Death in a long time. In fact, she wondered, just where was he? She looked around rapidly.

"Do not waste time searching for me. I am not physically present." A brief pause, giving her enough time to remember that he had explained this logic when he gave her the coin. "He has identified the current location of the master, and he does not appear to be leaving at the moment. We will head there shortly."

"That's good", she said, noting Slogra's continued lack of reaction to this. "Where..."

"I did not expect you to be able to heal yourself."

Suzume hesitated slightly. "I was injured", she responded. "I did what I had to."

"I can only assume that you learned that technique from Marcus."

She started to worry slightly. "Yeah. I guess you'd have a problem with us prolonging life, huh?"

"There is nothing inherently wrong with postponing my eventual arrival, especially in a time of need." A short pause. "No, I am surprised that he would deliberately pass on that knowledge and thus render himself obsolete."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Death sounded like he was trying to be patient. "I have intervened several times so that you could continue to aid me. It may not have occurred to you that your friend survives for the same reason."

This confused her. "Really? Why would you protect him? You never mentioned him in your plan."

"It is no trouble for me to allow you to not pass on, but I am incapable of restoring health. As you are of little use to me when injured, it was in my best interest to protect a cleric and keep him alive to ensure your vitality."

She grumbled. "So Marcus was a pawn in your scheme, too." A brief pause of realization. "And he knew this."

It started to make sense now. She had deduced that he was worried about Death's presence. He had even specifically asked her not to tell anyone that he had taught her how to heal. At the time, she had thought that he didn't want to be outed as the teacher. Now, she realized, he didn't want her to be caught using the spell at all. She wished he had made it clearer.

Especially once she heard Death's conclusion.

"You are now fully capable of healing yourself. If you are able to fulfill both functions, there is no longer any reason for me to allow him to continue to exist."


	5. Rebel

**Chapter 5: Rebel**

For what may have been the first time in her life, Suzume wished that Death would appear in front of her. She needed to focus her anger somewhere. It wasn't satisfying to scream at an empty ceiling, and considering the recent battle, the idea of getting mad at Slogra just felt wrong.

More importantly, when he was in the room, she felt like she could do something to stop him. Considering who he was, it was unlikely, but still...

In this situation, though, she could do little but sink to her knees and appeal. "Please... don't do it."

"You care for him." Death's words, traveling through the air from no apparent source, showed little emotion.

She sighed. "Marcus taught me how to be a priestess." A deep breath. "I'd rather let Soma die than him."

"I find it hard to believe, and yet I have seen it many times. Humans who would trade away the lives of themselves and everyone they know for the sake of one person."

"So you will..."

"You already agreed to allow Soma to die as part of the pact. The survival of your friends was never discussed."

She pounded the ground angrily. "Fine! What do I have to do to..."

"I will not accept your offer." His voice had become stern. "Death is a part of life. You need to accept that humanity is mortal. To do otherwise will result in nothing but disappointment."

"...you bastard." She clenched her fist angrily. "You dare to say those words, when you're about to kill a man for outliving his usefulness?"

A short pause. "I am not killing him. You should be thankful that I allowed you to meet with him at all."

Suzume's eyes widened. "What do you..."

"He has been deceased for a while now."

She shook her head. "No. He can't be. I've talked to him repeatedly. He looked fine."

"You also retain a large amount of health for someone who has been deprived of life on two occasions."

She sighed. "Okay, I get it. So... uh... what happened?"

"He was killed by the vampires of this castle. Possibly, by the master himself."

Suzume sighed. He had said that he was looking for Soma. She should have expected something like this.

Death continued. "It was fortunate that I noticed him. He possessed great holy power and sufficient cause for revenge. Thus, he was ideal to accompany me on my first attempt."

"Wait. Your first..."

_He suspects that I have given up at this time. This is not my first attempt._ He had said that. And she hadn't thought about what that meant. So Marcus had been...

"He was here _before me?_" Suzume shouted in disbelief. "He knew what was going on the whole time? He never told me he formed a pact with you!"

"He did nothing of the sort. When I offered to help him, he accepted. You were the only one to make demands."

"So _that's_ why he was so desperate to make sure I didn't die, huh? Do you get all your allies this way?"

Without acknowledging her comment, he continued. "His holy power was great, but it was not sufficient for the task. In fact, he was the one who suggested your presence in his stead."

"_Why?_" She was having difficulty taking this. "Why would Marcus do that? Seriously?"

Death remained unemotional. "I do not claim to understand his decision, though I suppose you have greater holy power than him. I merely sent for you, and you already know how we met."

Sent for her? He had...

...the people in the village. The vampires mentioned that they had killed them all. But a small number of survivors remained, and they contacted the church, and when she arrived, they directed her to the castle. And while she had noticed that they were just as severely injured as the bodies in the street, she hadn't considered why...

"...so you were using me from the moment I left." She pounded the stone floor again. "That's just freaking great."

"Considering how rarely I am able to intervene in mortal affairs, you will find that manipulation is my most common strategy."

"It is, huh?" she snapped angrily. "So why the hell are you telling me this? Do you _want_ me to break the pact?"

Death's voice was impatient now. "You asked for this. You could have achieved your goals without ever needing to learn the circumstances of your arrival. Instead, you demanded complete honesty from me."

"Yeah! Like this made it any easier to trust you!"

"I suggest that you find solace in the knowledge that the pact renders any further actions I could make along these lines difficult and impractical."

"Oh! Like that helps! You sent me on a damn suicide mission, enlisted my help under false pretenses and allowed everyone else to get killed, and now you want to make my last remaining living help drop dead while you pile all the blame on him? And you think I should be okay with this because of our goddamn pact? If I had known that you set me up, I would have never..."

**"Stop speaking."**

Suzume stopped. Considering the entity who gave the order, she didn't know if this was actually a willful action on her part.

Death's voice was considerably more forceful than usual. "This pact was your idea. You knew who I was when you agreed to it. And **I do not break pacts**_**. Ever. **_Everything that I have told you is the truth." He paused. "If I was in your position, I would be more interested in the fact that I gave you this information, and _Marcus did not._"

Suzume pondered this. Every time she had spoken with Death before, she left with the indication that his words, while not polite, were correct. And now he had said all this, and almost every assumption she had ever made was proven to be false, and now she had to admit that he was right and everything Marcus had said before was wrong...

"...good question. Why would he send me here, knowing I was likely to die, and yet try to keep me alive?"

His voice was exasperated now. "This is tiresome. Stay where you are. I will claim his soul and bring him to meet with you directly. You will be able to ask him as many questions as you like."

She sighed and sat down on the floor, looking up at Slogra. He still hadn't reacted in any manner. She wondered just how much of the conversation he could hear, and whether or not he actually cared about its contents.

"...this is unusual." Death's voice seemed genuinely surprised. "I cannot control his soul at all."

"Let me guess", Suzume muttered. "Holy power?"

"No. This is far more interesting. It is the power of dominance."

Suzume thought back. "I think I've heard the term before. Vaguely."

"Your mother knows of it. It is a large component of the power of Dracula. It allows him to claim the souls of the fallen for his personal use."

She nodded. "Sounds like something you'd know about."

"His soul is no longer in my possession. It has been claimed using this power, and thus belongs to the master of this castle."

She stood up immediately. "No!" Slogra immediately turned to face her.

"You are fortunate, Suzume. If our efforts are successful, you will be able to save the soul of your mentor." Death's voice became more contemplative. "Continue to follow my instructions precisely, and I may even feel generous..."

Suzume frowned. In light of the pact, what choice did she have? "...fine. You win this round."

"Head to the eastern ramparts. Gaibon waits there, and I shall meet you when I am able."

"I guess I'll do that, then." She walked over to where Slogra was standing, and then turned around and looked at the ceiling again. "You know, you're really starting to annoy me."

"Few mortal men have ever tolerated my presence."

* * *

The door that led from the central structure to the eastern side of the ramparts opened slowly. From the shadow cast by the structure against the moonlight, a pair of eyes watched.

Slogra looked through the crack in the door cautiously, then stepped out. He scanned the area around him, judging it to be free of threats, and then noticed the eyes upon him. He stared at them impassively and lowered his spear to his side.

Gaibon stepped out from the shadows with a toothy expression on his face. Slogra gave him a quick nod, and then turned to look behind him.

No one was there.

* * *

Back inside the structure, Suzume finished healing herself, and then remained sitting on the floor in thought.

The last battle had taken its toll on her. While there were more guards than usual, she just wasn't handling them as well as she used to be. Slogra had picked up the slack, certainly, but...

Marcus had requested her to come here. Whether or not he thought she would be at risk, there had to be a reason.

Death suspected that she had stronger magic than him. She had a hard time believing that. She considered herself talented, yes, but Marcus was her teacher. Every spell she had learned came from him or from one of the books that he gave to her. He had more than a decade's worth of experience on her. If he failed... what made him think she would do any better?

It wasn't like she was much good otherwise. She had only a basic sense of strategy. She was brash and gullible, and had fallen into far too many traps since she arrived here. And she was only an amateur with a polearm. Good enough to destroy a few weak demons, but nothing that would impress anyone, especially when compared to someone like Slogra.

She groaned softly. Sometimes she wished she wasn't a Belnades. People always expected too much of her, and then complained when she failed to meet their standards.

And what standards they were, too. Death had practically wanted her to die, proved that she was no match for anything that he or the vampires could do, and was now insisting that she aid him in killing an innocent person...

The door opened again, letting a small draft into the room. Slogra entered.

Suzume looked up at him. "Did you find your friend? Is he okay?"

The dinosaur skeleton didn't respond visibly.

She looked down at the floor again. "Great."

There was a lengthy period of silence. Slogra closed the door behind him.

"He should probably come in, too. It's harder to spot us in here."

Slogra didn't move. Suzume exhaled sharply. This was going nowhere. Would she have to go out there and drag Gaibon in herself? She sighed. It wasn't worth the bother. If he got caught, it was his fault.

Something poked her in the shoulder. She looked up. "What?" she asked angrily.

Slogra was holding the blunt end of a spear toward her. She thought for a moment, then remembered that he had picked up both spears after the crusher incident. "Is that one mine?" she asked.

Slogra nodded slightly. She reached up, took the spear from him, and dropped it to the side next to her staff. "Thanks."

No reply from the demon. She continued to stare at the wall.

"I guess your boss isn't back yet, huh?" Still no answer. "That or he's spying on me again without letting me know", she muttered to herself. "It wouldn't surprise me." She raised her head and voice to Slogra again. "Was he always like this, or just after he met Dracula?"

Slogra just stared at her. She stared at the wall again and grumbled to herself. It felt like the vampires had systematically eliminated everyone on the premises who would bother to have a straightforward conversation with her, or even listen.

She was being poked in the shoulder again. "What now?" she snapped, looking up at Slogra. He was once again tapping her with the blunt end of his spear.

"You already gave me the other one!" She gestured to the staff next to her. "I don't even deserve it. You'd be better off with a backup weapon. Especially compared to me." She sighed. "I should just stick to ma..."

He poked her again, this time with the sharp end of the spear. She felt the slow trickle of blood coming from her shoulder, and glared upward at him. "What the hell was that for?"

Slogra stared at her impassively. Then he lifted his spear and swung it at her, striking her in the side with the shaft.

"All right! That does it!" Suzume stood up, grabbing her staff in the process. "I don't know what the hell you're doing, but if you do that one more time, I'm blasting you." She pointed the staff at him to accentuate her threat. "You should be happy I haven't already..."

In the blink of an eye, he struck the staff with his own spear, causing it to break free of her grasp and roll across the room to connect with the opposite wall unceremoniously. She looked at it in shock, and then looked back at Slogra. "You asked for it!" she yelled, charging up a spell in her hand.

He lowered the spear to one side, quickly stepped forward and grabbed her arm with his opposite hand. It wasn't terribly painful, but she wouldn't be able to cast a spell in his direction like this. Before she could reconsider her strategy, she felt the shaft of his spear thrust into her hand, and then he had released her and dashed behind her.

Turning around quickly, she saw him staring at her. He had picked up the other spear and was holding it in a battle position toward her.

"Spear fight, huh?" Suzume said. "Whatever. You know you have the advantage, right?"

As she finished speaking, he dashed forward and swung his spear at her. She blocked quickly. He followed it up with a few pokes, which she tried to sidestep or deflect as best as she could. Finally, without warning, he swung the blunt end out toward her legs. It connected, she reacted in pain slightly, and before she knew it, he had planted the end of the spear firmly in her chest.

She looked down. No blood. He had deliberately poked her with the blunt end again. She looked up angrily. "See? I can't def..."

And he quickly struck her legs, knocking her down. As she slowly got up, he backed off slightly, holding his spear at his side.

"You bastard!" she yelled, grabbing her spear and charging at him.

She tried everything she could. Hard swings, soft swings, pokes, feints, high and low. He dodged them all fairly easily, except for a couple of strikes that he had to lift his spear to block. Finally, as she went for a mid level poke, he caught the spear in his hand and stopped it. She struggled to move it for a while, but Slogra's grip didn't loosen and she couldn't get his arm to budge.

Shaking her head, she let go of the spear, leaving it in his hand. "I lose", she said dejectedly. "I told you. I can't touch you." She turned in the direction of where her staff had fallen. "If you want a fight so bad, try someone with more than a day's worth..."

Before she could cross the room, his hand grabbed her wrist. "Stop that!" she yelled, and turned around in an effort to strike him with her other hand. This time, he didn't dodge. Her fist hardly hurt him, and he didn't let go of her wrist. With a slow, deliberate motion, he raised his spear to waist level with one hand, then directed her wrist until her hand laid on the shaft.

"What are you..." she started to ask before he held his hand out in the direction of her other arm. Reluctantly, she held it out for him. He took it, more gently this time, and directed her other hand to hold the spear at a lower point. This done, he grasped the spear about halfway between the two hands, lifted it up slightly, and started pointing it in various directions. Then he settled on one and pulled the spear further away from Suzume, then pushed it back toward her.

Suzume realized what he was doing. "Are you trying to teach me?" she asked, looking at him. He looked up at her briefly, nodded, and then held the spear with one hand as he grasped one of her arms with the other hand. He then pulled the spear further from her, holding her arm such that it would keep the spear level as she thrust.

After a few minutes of this, she was finally poking with the spear in a manner that met with Slogra's approval. He then took the spear and reached for her wrist again.

"No", she interrupted. "It's not necessary. Seriously, I'll stick to the staff." He looked at her blankly for a few seconds, and then moved his hand away. She rubbed her wrist for a few seconds and looked at him again. "Nothing personal. Thanks for trying."

Without a word, not that he was known to use words anyway, he returned to the door and looked through it again. Suzume slowly walked over to her staff, picked it up, and turned to watch him.

He really had tried to help. That alone was surprising to her. It was hard to tell at first, because he seemed more interested in goading her into a fight. Maybe he wanted to observe her form first, or maybe get her into a mindset where she was willing to strike as hard as possible.

It was about this time that she realized that, before he had started, she had been moping about Death's recent revelations and wondering why she was even bothering with the quest. Suddenly, she wasn't so sure about his goal. He might have been trying to help her become better in battle, or he may have just been giving her something to do to relieve her stress and take her mind off the situation...

"Death's still not back yet, is he?" she asked. Slogra turned, shook his head, and returned his sight to the doorway.

She thought for a bit longer, and then walked over and picked up her spear again. "Okay. We've got time. What else were you gonna show me?"

* * *

Practice went smoothly in general. Suzume had long since come to the conclusion that she would never reach Slogra's level of skill, but she was beginning to understand the fundamentals. He put a particular amount of emphasis on making sure that she didn't leave herself open after most of her strikes.

She was also interested in figuring out how she could make her training more practical for her style of fighting. So she had been brainstorming a few ways to use spells and spear strikes in quick succession when she first heard Gaibon's roar coming from outside the door.

She looked at Slogra. "Let me guess. He's our watchman?" He didn't respond to this, instead dashing to the door while picking up his spear in a smooth motion along the way. She followed quickly.

Just outside the door, Gaibon was staring upward at the eastern tower. Still no sign of Death, Suzume noticed immediately. She couldn't tell what he was doing, so she moved next to him and followed his gaze.

One of the lights in the eastern tower was on. Upon close examination, she could see the motion of a shadow inside the room.

"I see it, too", she mumbled. "Maybe we should check it out."

She had barely met Gaibon earlier, so she took this opportunity to take a good look at him. In her opinion, he didn't look too different from her mental image of a generic demon. Sharp teeth, a pair of horns, claws, and a multitude of muscles of a bluish hue. No wonder she had mistaken him for an average monster earlier. His limbs were actually bat wings, but sufficiently built and possessing of digits to be used as arms. Most importantly to her, his facial expression, while savage, did not bear any immediate hostility toward her.

"Um", she said, looking back at the tower again. "I can't see it any more. Should we take a closer look?"

Gaibon looked at her, then past her to Slogra. Then, with some hesitation, he raised his arms and flapped them enough to lift himself into the air above the ramparts. It was hardly as graceful looking as a soaring bird, but it got the job done, she decided.

Then, before she could react, there was a gust of air pressure, and there was a fair amount of weight digging into her shoulders, and she was no longer standing on a solid surface. "Hey!" she exclaimed in surprise.

Adjusting slowly to the new sensation of being carried, she took a look around her. In front, the upper levels of the eastern tower, including the suspicious window from earlier. To the sides, a fairly nice if darkened view of the surrounding countryside. Below, an increasingly large drop to the ramparts below - no, she decided, she would not continue to look in that direction. Above, her view was blocked by a pair of blue knees.

Looking forward again, she saw that she had been carried directly to the window. The room continued to be well-lit, containing a chandelier, a few candles on what appeared to be a desk, and a furnished bed in the back corner. No one seemed to be in the room at this time. She started to wonder if the flickering of the candles had created the illusion of...

"...Suzume..."

That was a man's voice, she realized. Who would be calling for her that knew her name? A surviving clergyman? She still couldn't see anyone inside.

"Uh, can you get any closer?" she called upward. While she couldn't see any response, her body was now being carried closer to the window. A moment later, she was able to stand on the sill, at which point she leaned forward, and the claws released her shoulders. There was only a small amount of lingering pain, and it passed quickly.

The room still appeared to be empty, but now she could see a small table to the side of the window, as well as the door that led out of the room. It was closed.

"Thanks", she said, turning to the window where Gaibon continued to hover. "So, were you told to listen to me or are you just being poli..."

The window's shutters suddenly slammed closed. The resulting gust of wind was sufficient to extinguish the chandelier and desk candles, leaving her completely enveloped in the dark.

She sighed audibly. "I'm getting tired of this."

"You're not very bright, you know." It was the female vampire's voice. Yet again. Suzume started to wonder if she would ever get the opportunity to wipe that smug expression off her face.

"Is this going to end in another fatal stabbing?" she asked lamely.

A brief pause. "No. Not if you cooperate." And, to Suzume's surprise, the candles on the desk were relit, giving Suzume barely enough light to make out the room's furnishings again. The vampire was standing in front of her, smiling. She made another spark with her fingers for effect, then continued. "I'm here to tell you to leave."

Suzume shook her head and glared at the other woman. "Not happening. You killed those villagers, you have two of my friends, and in case you didn't know, my soul is riding on this."

"So I've heard", the vampire said. "You shouldn't worry. Soma is unhurt."

"Oh?"

"Trust me", she said in a tone of voice that made Suzume not wish to do so. "If he was dead, we wouldn't be able to tap his power like this."

She started to pace around the room as she spoke. "Vampirism is an unholy curse, I'm sure you're aware. Now imagine what it must be like to have the abilities of a vampire, but while retaining your identity, and even being able to use holy power at the same time."

Suzume nodded. "I wondered about that last part."

"We have no desire for Dracula to return." The vampire turned to face Suzume directly, probably to imply that she was not lying to her. "We just thought, why should Soma be the only one to benefit from his existence? Why not allow everyone to know what it's like to be like him? To fly through the air, to bend souls to their whim... to not fear death?"

"Wait. You're not just vampires... you're Draculas?" In the background, there was the sound of a heavy pound.

The vampire shrugged. "At least, a lot more like him. And since we're still partially human, we can survive sunlight." She reached forward suddenly and grasped the rosary that had been hanging around Suzume's neck. "Sanctity, too. This little cross has no effect on us."

As she let go, Suzume looked down at the religious symbol. "I had forgotten about that thing..."

"Naturally, Death doesn't approve of this, and I can see that he managed to wrangle you into his service." She took a brief breath, then smiled again. "That's why I'm here to offer you a way out."

Suzume stared at her in disbelief. "After all I've tried to do to you? Why would _you_ help me?"

The vampiress gestured to the door. "It wasn't my idea. Your friend suggested it."

Suzume turned to the door to see that it was now open. Marcus was standing in the doorway, leaning casually against one of the jambs. "Hello again, Suzume", he said with a bright smile on his face.

A little too bright. With visible fangs.

She stared at him for a moment. Behind her, there was another loud pound from the window.

Finally she reacted. "Marcus!" she yelled, marching toward the door. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

His smile disappeared, replaced by concern. "Suzume, I..."

"You knew Soma was responsible for this! You knew Death was trying to interfere! You set me up to come here! And now you're telling me you've been with these vampires the whole time?"

Behind her, the vampire responded. "No. Not the whole time. He..."

"Please", he interrupted. "I can explain." He looked at Suzume. "Death owned my soul. He told you that, right?"

Suzume nodded slowly while keeping a suspicious eye on him.

"Well, like you, he allowed me to hold onto it. You know, until he no longer needed me around. So when you teamed up with him, I realized that my hours were numbered." He looked depressed. "He would have killed me. You know that."

"It's my fault", she replied. "I shouldn't have healed myself."

"Not at all. That's the _point_ of healing, isn't it? To get better when you're hurt? No, he shouldn't have been such a jackass about..."

The pound came from the window again.

Marcus quickly got to the point. "Anyway, that's when I remembered that these vampires have the power of dominance."

"He asked to join us", the vampiress said. "Better to be one of us than die, he said."

"So you joined up with..." Suzume started, then drew the obvious conclusion. _"You stole your own soul?"_

"I did what I had to do to live", he finished, then looked at her in the eyes. "I'm sorry for misleading you."

He had said that he could cure himself, she thought. And he didn't. He wanted this to happen...

"We can do the same thing for you, Miss Belnades", the woman whispered in her ear. "Join us and your soul can be yours again. You won't have to serve Death. You can leave and pretend none of this ever happened."

Suzume turned to face her directly. "You were in the church, right? You tried to cover up the slaughter. You want me to keep quiet about these events. Why?"

The vampiress shrugged. "It should be obvious. If word got out that elite vampires like us were around, humanity would be restless. And then we wouldn't be able to get our blood so easily."

The window was pounded again. In Suzume's mind, it helped to accentuate the point. "Oh. Blood."

"We're vampires. We need it."

Marcus spoke again. "They slaughtered the villagers for two reasons. They wanted to keep their disappearance from the church a secret, and they needed to harvest the blood for later."

Suzume's eyes widened. "That's horrible!"

"It is worth it if it means Death can no longer come for us." The vampiress glared at her. "So, will you join us, or will we have to silence you as well?"

In a quick motion, Suzume moved to the side, pointing her staff directly at both vampires. "I can't believe you two! I'd rather give myself to Death than let you have your way with humanity!"

"You would..." Marcus muttered.

The vampiress drew a sword, similar to the one her male counterpart had wielded earlier. "Don't say I didn't make the offer."

"Don't make this hard, Suzume." He stepped forward. "Give her your staff."

She glared at him. "No. I'm not stupid."

"Just give it to her." There was now a slight smirk on his face. "As hard as possible."

The vampiress turned. "What?"

Suzume had learned well. In under two seconds, she had grasped the staff and struck the woman with it. She screamed in pain and fell to the side. Reacting quickly, Suzume moved to her position, lifted the staff, and drove it directly into her back.

"AAAAAAUGH!" the vampiress screamed. "You assholes! How did you... we're supposed to be immune to holy..." She never finished her sentence, as her body caught fire and burned to ashes in seconds.

As a reflex, Suzume next turned the staff toward Marcus, who smiled and shrugged. "Holy power. Yeah. That doesn't help much against weapons that have been enchanted to kill Dracula."

The window pounded yet again, louder this time. He looked in that direction, then looked back at Suzume. "Thanks for your help. And thanks for taking that thing off my hands earlier before it killed me, too."

"Marcus?", she asked hopefully. "You're not one of them?"

He shook his head. "Well, kinda. She was right. I'm a vampire now." He sighed. "But she was also right when she said it doesn't change who we are. I'm me."

"Yeah... but you're a vampire, too."

"So what?" he said dismissively. "It's better than the alternative. I'm still alive and I've still got my soul. I can get blood without killing anyone. I don't feel like terrorizing the world. Hell, I could probably fly around healing everyone!" He paused, looking at her again. "I can't really say I'm doing anything wrong."

"Fine", Suzume stated bluntly. "Now tell me about your other lies. Why you tricked me into coming out here. Why you didn't tell me about Death. And exactly why you're taking advantage of Soma's power when you should be saving him."

He sighed. "You're right. I shouldn't have lied to you. You don't deserve it." He took a deep breath. "The truth is, I didn't want Death..."

The pound sounded again, except this time, the window broke. Marcus jumped backward in time to avoid Gaibon flying shoulder-first into the room, crashing into the opposite wall and falling flat on his back. He and Suzume looked at him, then turned to the window to see the entity that was floating through it into the room.

"You deliberately repossessed your soul with the power of dominance", Death said contemptuously. "I should have expected something so underhanded from you."

"No kidding", Suzume muttered under her breath.

"I have nothing to say to you anymore", Marcus said bluntly. "My life is mine again."

"Do not be so certain. This girl has vowed to help me destroy your master and the vampires under his command. Do not believe that you will be freed from his fate."

"Go right ahead", Marcus said. "He's not my master. He doesn't command me. Do as you wish."

"We are still sworn to kill you."

"Is that so?" Marcus was sounding downright flippant. "How do you intend to do that? I only claimed a soul that rightfully belongs to me, and I haven't even raised a finger against you."

If Death had a facial expression, he might have been glaring. "You continue to annoy me."

Suzume was lost. "Uh, what? Someone please explain?"

Marcus looked up at the ceiling. "Uh... can't remember the exact words... God gave the angel of death his blessing and mastery over the mortal soul so he'd deliver their souls to the next life... heaven and hell, all that... uh... claim their lives to release them from eternal suffering... or to enforce the will of those above him... or, as an angel, to stop those who would stand against God... later on, they decided that yeah, self-defense would also be allowed." He shrugged. "All in all, he can kill the dying, or those that attack him, or those who threaten the proper workings of the universe, which I guess are based on some unsaid rules, but we know them when we see them, and yeah, stealing souls from him should count there, but that doesn't matter, because it's actually my soul and I can justify it that way." He paused for emphasis. "Anyone else, _he can't do anything_."

She boggled at him. "Uh... that sure as hell wasn't in any holy book I've read."

To her side, Gaibon began to stir and rise to his feet. Suzume walked over to stand beside him, keeping her eyes on the arguers.

Death watched her impassively. "Despite his insultingly poor delivery, he is correct." He turned to Marcus. "It does not matter. As you said, I can also act according to the will of those above me, and I think you will find that one such being is Dracula."

Marcus grinned. "But Dracula's not here, is he?"

"Not yet." He moved in the direction of the window again. Marcus turned to watch him.

Something about this didn't feel right to Suzume. She looked at Gaibon once again, and then took a few steps in Marcus's direction. "You know a bit too much about Death for my taste."

Marcus shrugged. "I'm a healer. Know the enemy."

Death turned to look out the window. "I have been subject to these limitations for considerably longer than your entire bloodline has been in existence. You would be foolish to believe that your understanding is superior to mine." A short pause. "I have known for a long time that there are many situations where I am incapable of exacting my will on my adversaries. This is one reason why I keep minions."

Suzume had watched everyone move around the room, and she had figured out what Death was doing, so she was one step ahead of him. She raised her staff horizontally above her head in a manner that successfully blocked Gaibon from striking Marcus in the back. She turned to glare at the gargoyle. "Don't."

Marcus turned to the two in surprise. "Hey!"

"If you want to kill Marcus, you have to go through me first. And the pact says you can't."

Behind her, she heard Death's voice grow angry. "The pact also says that we have to _work together_ to destroy the vampires."

Without turning, she responded. "I know. And I'll be helping you until we complete that task. But it does not say that we have to destroy any of them on sight." She quickly moved her staff to keep Gaibon from getting around her. "He is not attacking us and he says he doesn't serve the master. As far as I'm concerned, he's no threat to either of us. We can safely ignore him for now."

Marcus's voice was relieved. "Thank you, Suzume."

"Don't thank me." Another block. "Death's right. You're one of our targets. If you get in our way, I will be forced to kill you myself. I can, and I will. Trust me on that. And you'd better get your condition cured sometime _very soon_."

"...you wouldn't..."

And then Death said something completely unexpected to her. "I defer to your decision. We withdraw for now." Gaibon, hearing this, stopped attacking immediately and started walking around the two humans to return to his master's side.

"Huh? You agree?" Suzume continued to separate the demon from Marcus with her staff, just in case.

"We are running short on time to argue about this. We must move."

She nodded. "Sounds good to me."

"In the end, his soul is damned. I will claim it soon enough. If not tonight, then when Dracula returns."

As she reached Death's side, she heard Marcus behind her. "He won't. You're not getting Soma. Suzume will stop you."

Without any hesitation, she turned to look at him and glared. "No. I won't."

"What?"

"You heard the pact. I made a promise. I can't just break it."

Marcus was looking somewhat fearful. "You'd let him die? You, Suzume?"

"Think of it as sacrificing his life to save everyone", Death's voice resounded from behind her. "He shall be a hero to millions."

Marcus's expression quickly changed to that of anger. "I don't need to hear that kind of crap from anyone who is willing to enslave people to help him revive Dracula."

"I have a sworn duty. Neither she nor I can simply give up on such things, regardless of your opinion."

"Promises at the expense of the common good are hardly worth keeping!"

"And what good is the common good if a commoner is unable to trust the word of others?"

"_That's enough!_" Suzume yelled. "There's someone else more deserving of a moral lecture!"

Marcus took a deep breath. "The master is stronger than the others. He's not going to be nearly as simple to defeat."

She looked at him. "But there's no reason why this staff won't work on him, is there?"

"It'll hurt him, at least. But you have to get to him first."

She turned to face her ally again. "I trust the reaper has a plan for that?"

Death nodded. "I rarely act without one."

"There you go. We'll take care of everything." She turned to the gargoyle. "Gaibon, can you get me down from here?"

His response was quick, as if he hadn't almost come to blows with her several minutes earlier. He climbed on the windowsill and hunched over in a manner that would allow Suzume to climb on his back.

Marcus's voice was still worrisome. "Suzume, listen to me! You can't let him get Soma!"

"Silence, demimortal", Death replied. "She knows to whom she is supposed to listen, especially if she wants her soul returned to her."

"Heh." Marcus smiled slightly. "Her soul, you say. Have you forgotten about the whole 'power of dominance' thing? Just so you know, if she winds up dead, odds are someone's getting her soul. And it might not be you."

Suzume, who had climbed onto Gaibon's back by now, turned and stared at him in silence. To her side, Death was contemplative. "The thought has occurred to me."

And without another word, Gaibon took off, and Suzume once again saw the sights of the countryside around the castle. To her side, Death levitated effortlessly at the same velocity.

She shrugged in his direction. "Maybe I should have let him bite me after all."

Death stared at her. "If he had, I would have had an alibi while you died with that staff in your possession."

"...I was joking."

"I was not." His voice was stern. "This is not the time to take ill-conceived risks. You will only regret your actions later."

She looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Since when do you care if I endanger myself?"

"It would coincide with the time when I realized that this may be our final chance at success."

"Things will go bad for you if you fail your lord, huh?"

Below the three, the ramparts drew closer. Suzume could make out the figure of Slogra near the doorway. She turned to look at Death again to find him staring at his scythe. "That would not be my worst failure", he mumbled quietly.

He sounded different, she thought. He certainly wasn't being as pushy as before. If she had to make a guess, she'd say that he had found out that he was not in as much control of the situation as he had thought.


	6. Survival

**Chapter 6: Survival**

Every once in a while, Suzume remembered that she was not in Dracula's castle.

Some of the aspects were similar. Both were fortresses designed to keep intruders out. Both were comprised of stonework. Both were currently populated by the undead, or whatever category applied to these new vampires. And both proudly displayed towers that stretched far into the sky, perfect for casting a silhouette against the moon above.

But the differences were becoming apparent. Dracula's castle did not possess an upper structure that could have been called a castle by itself, complete with its own front gate. While she had heard about dark barriers protecting Dracula, he most likely would not have used a holy field like the one that surrounded the upper half of the structure. And while this castle's towers were indeed impressive, none of them contained a clock.

It was past midnight. The bells would have struck by now. She turned to look at Death, momentarily wondering if all the stories were true, and what it must be like to live inside such a noisy structure.

Death had more pressing concerns on his mind. Once he saw that he had Suzume's attention, he began his explanation. "Slogra will enter the tower here and engage the opposition in battle. This will both distract the enemy and prevent interference from any ground-based threats." As he spoke, Slogra moved to the side of the gate.

He gestured upward. "The holy magic field appears to be spherical in shape. I will analyze it until I am able to determine its radius. With this information, I will be able to pinpoint the location of its source." He looked at Suzume. "It will be your task to head to that location and eliminate the field directly. With the barrier out of the way, I will be able to instantly appear at the location of their master, strike him dead and claim his soul."

"What if the master himself is the source?" Suzume asked.

"You should attack him. Expending his energy and attention in the battle should give me the opening I will need." He paused. "Any subsequent steps will be determined at that time. I do not know if destroying the master will have any significant effects on the other vampires or on this castle. Do you have any objections?"

"None", she said. "How will I reach the source?

"Gaibon will carry you directly to the closest entrance point", he said, gesturing to the gargoyle. "Afterward, his role will be to guard us from aerial attack."

She nodded. "I understand."

"We do not have much time. Prepare to move as soon as Slogra enters."

Suzume turned to look at Gaibon. With an inquisitive look on his face, he lifted one of his wings upward and pointed to himself with his other claw. She smiled. "I think I'll ride on your back this time."

"You are handling yourself better in their presence", Death noted.

She shrugged in his direction. "I guess I just needed to be sure they were looking out for me."

He gazed at her. "You are still preoccupied with the safety of your soul."

"It's hard to trust someone who'll have no interest in my well-being once this is all over."

"Your reaction is normal." He appeared to be thinking about something. "Perhaps with a vow of fealty, I may be willing to support you for the remainder of your existence."

She shook her head. "Marcus probably felt the same way at first." She sighed. "Now look what he's become."

"His current status is the result of his own actions."

"He did it so you wouldn't kill him!" she said in a frustrated voice. "Even I can see that!"

"He informed me that he disapproved of my goals, and then made an effort to prevent my success. Mortals who oppose me frequently find themselves to be expendable."

"Maybe he's right..." she grumbled to herself.

"You have possessed similar thoughts. I am certain of it. You wish for there to be a way to save Soma. You wish that you could prevent Dracula from returning entirely."

She sighed. "Why did all of this have to happen in the first place?"

Death looked upward briefly. "It is difficult to recall events from the late 11th century."

"I don't mean Dracula. Some things, I can't change." She stared at his eye sockets. "How did this happen? Why is Soma here, and why do they have his power?"

He looked past her to Slogra's position. "There is not enough time to explain. We must initiate the plan now. I will be able to inform you of the details later."

Her eyes narrowed. "You're not telling me something."

"Nothing of importance", he said dismissively. "I did not instigate these events. I did not even become involved until Marcus intervened."

"That's kinda hard to believe."

In an instant, Death was floating directly in front of her, his cloaked presence looming over her figure. His voice showed a great deal of annoyance. "I have not spoken lies to you, Suzume. I even swore off pretense at your request. Why are you incapable of accepting my words as truth?"

Her response was less emotional. "You want me to trust you, and yet you don't trust me enough to let me know the whole story."

One of the difficulties of speaking to someone who has a skull for a head is that it is impossible to tell the difference between a piercing glare and a direct yet understanding look. Nevertheless, his voice reflected it. "Very well. We move now, but I will inform you of everything that happened at the earliest convenience." With this, he turned and started levitating upward.

"That's more like it", she said to herself as she watched him leave. At the sound of a soft growl, she turned to face Gaibon, who had already lowered himself to the ground. "Right, I'm coming."

Mounting him was simple enough. Once he had returned to a standing position, she turned to look at the other demon. "Good luck, Slogra." And the pair took off in the same direction.

Slogra watched his allies depart for a moment. Then, as his eyes became more serious, he turned to the gate and started breaking it down with his spear.

* * *

The lower levels were of no consequence to Suzume. The master was up in the tower, Death had said.

She looked upward. Death had already passed out of sight. The holy field was several stories above them. The important thing was to wait until they got word from Death, then move in.

"I don't know if we should be heading for the field right now", she whispered into Gaibon's ear. "We don't want the master to know that we've arrived just..."

She never finished the sentence. There was a sound of rushing wind, then Gaibon suddenly jerked in the direction of the tower. His arms stopped flapping and the two stopped rising. Then, at the apex, the demon pitched forward and headed into an uncontrolled nosedive.

Suzume's first thought was to panic. Her second thought was that Gaibon still had wings. She leaned down, grabbed his arms, and held them out as if they were a glider. It wasn't perfect, but it gave her enough control to aim for one of the tower windows just below them.

Her aim was spot on. Gaibon sailed through the window, landed flat on his chest and skidded to a stop in a roar of pain. Suzume jumped off and immediately looked around. She was in what looked like a study. A desk sat against one wall, portraits and bookshelves lined the walls, and a chair had been overturned.

A vampire was now standing in the way of the window. "The master is not to be disturbed", he said in a menacing voice. Behind him, the window slammed closed.

The ensuing fight did not end as quickly as Suzume had hoped. Yes, she had her staff, but the vampire was better at dodging it than she expected, and he was armed with knives. Worse yet, Gaibon was still prone on the ground, and the vampire seemed to be just as interested in hurting him as he was in attacking her.

In the end, she managed to strike him with a fire spell, fake a swing at him, and then strike him in the chest as soon as he made a hasty dodge. Once she landed that hit, it was over for him. He was too weak to dodge the follow-up strike.

"My sacrifice is worth eternity", he gasped as his body burned to ash. Then all was still in the room.

As she attempted to catch her breath, Suzume headed for the window and tried to open it again. After a few tests, she gave up. It had been sealed tightly. The only remaining exit from the room was the door that appeared to lead to the central structure. She would have to take that exit and try to find another way out.

This was not her immediate concern, though. She headed to Gaibon's side. Despite her worst fears, his eyes were open and he was still moving slightly. This was a relief, she decided. She'd hate to be stranded alone in the tower. "I should've expected resistance", she said to him. "We'd better hurry."

Gaibon nodded weakly and struggled to his claws and knees. Then his strength gave out and he collapsed again.

"No!" In an instant, she had knelt down beside him. "They injured you? That's..."

She checked his body quickly for wounds. He had a number of stab wounds, evidence of the vampire's hit-and-run strategy. Not to mention the more serious wound: a throwing knife that had caught him directly in the chest. Ignoring his roar of pain, she pulled out the knife with a small amount of effort and examined it.

"Holy water", she muttered. "They aren't holding back." She looked at Gaibon again as he continued to fail to stand. "I'll bet his other knives were treated, too. Nothing lethal, but..." She stopped. It was so obvious now. "...good for slowing you down."

Gaibon's eyes stayed upon her. He was in pain. She could tell that easily. And she wouldn't be able to finish the mission unless he recovered. But what could she do?

She looked at her staff. "Does healing magic even work on a demon?" He recoiled in pain as she brought it closer to him, so she decided against the idea immediately. She was going to be left to her own devices, it seemed.

_An elderly man, clad in the red robes of a cardinal, lay upon a bed in what appeared to be a church's clinic. To his side, a man and a woman, both dressed in religious garments, looked down at him with concern._

_His expression was frightened. "What do you mean, six months?"_

_"I'm sorry, but that's what the doctor said", the woman responded._

Gaibon continued to stare at Suzume with frightened eyes. She realized that she was still holding the staff over his body. Without a word, she dropped it further away from him. "What the hell was that?"

"This is a typical scenario in any church." Death's voice could be heard clearly. "Even the holiest-minded of men are resistant to the idea that their time could be at hand."

"Wait." She looked up at the ceiling, although she realized that any direction would have sufficed. "You did that?"

"You asked me to explain the situation as soon as an opportunity arose."

She rolled her eyes. "I didn't exactly expect a dramatization!"

"And I did not expect you to get Gaibon injured and waste time. But I have yet to criticize you for doing so."

Suzume gave up on the argument and instead headed toward the desk. Perhaps it would contain something that would help.

_"Can't something be done?" the cardinal asked._

_The young priest shook his head. "All of our standard medicines have failed."_

_"Faith has not been enough, either", the nun added. The cardinal sighed and stared at the ceiling._

_After a moment of thought, the priest offered an idea. "If holy methods cannot save you, then perhaps the time has come for unholy methods."_

Suzume found a handkerchief among a pile of unrelated objects in one of the desk drawers. It would be enough to clean the wounds, she decided.

"The church is not above corruption. Even those who practice the holy arts can be swayed by sufficient emotion."

She walked back to Gaibon's body. "I can't argue with that. I'm here, right?"

"Your sarcasm is noted."

As she knelt down and checked his wounds, she decided to ask. "By the way, what do you do to help a gargoyle heal?"

"I resummon him after his death", Death replied matter-of-factly.

Typical for him, she thought. "I don't think he's going to die just yet", she pointed out.

There was a lengthy pause. "I do not know", he admitted. "You could try fire. He has an affinity for it." Suzume nodded and produced a small flame in her hand.

_The cardinal shook his head slowly. "I don't approve of this. I'd rather be a dead rotting corpse than a living rotting corpse."_

"Excuse me!" Suzume shouted in an annoyed tone. "Don't distract me when I'm casting magic!"

It was to little avail. While Gaibon was indeed not harmed by the fires that currently covered his body, they did nothing to aid his wounds. Worse yet, vapor was rising from his chest wound, suggesting that the holy water within had risen to a boil.

"Maybe he's right", she said to Gaibon. "Maybe death is the only cure." Oddly enough, this didn't seem to provoke any kind of fearful expression on his face. She considered that he probably knew this already.

She shook her head. "No", she said. "I won't kill you. We're in a hurry. You need to keep going, no matter what. There has to be something else we can do."

Inspiration struck. As far as she could tell, there were two main problems that needed solving: she needed to close the wounds and she needed to make sure that he was not weakened by the presence of holy water. And she had just thought of a way to kill both birds with one stone. It would take a sacrifice on her part, but one she was willing to make...

She went to one of the light fixtures and carefully removed a candle.

_The priest had another idea. "It is said that vampires remain fair for their entire existence."_

_The cardinal thought about this. "That's true, but I don't want to live in fear of sunlight. People might get suspicious."_

_"I understand. I shall look for another solution."_

_"That's not necessary", the nun interjected. "I have heard..."_

"Wait a minute!" Suzume looked up from what she had been doing. Below her hand, hot wax from the candle continued to drip upon Gaibon's injury, with almost no negative feedback from the patient himself. "I know her voice! She was that damn vampire, wasn't she?"

A brief pause later, she heard Death's voice again. "You are correct. I was getting to that shortly."

"You'll have to let it wait", she said. "There's something more important than your story right now."

"I do not under..."

Death's voice was cut off at this point, as Suzume pulled the silver coin from her pocket and firmly pressed it into the melted wax on Gaibon's chest. He roared slightly in pain, but this subsided quickly.

Suzume smiled. "He said that thing protects against holy power. I hope it's enough. Can you walk now?"

Gaibon slowly tried to sit up and get to his feet. A few moments later, he succeeded. Once he had regained his balance, he bared a mouthful of sharp teeth at Suzume. She chose to interpret this as a sign of gratitude.

"You're welcome", she said. "We need to leave that there until the water evaporates. Now how about we find a way out of here?"

* * *

In hindsight, Suzume concluded, she was thankful that she had given Slogra a chance.

Gaibon, even at a time when he was not injured, was not known to be a close-range battler. Certainly, he was physically strong and she could imagine the damage that his claws could inflict, but that was not his strategy. His specialty was fire-breathing, preferably from a distance.

This meant that Suzume was stuck in the position of having to beat up the demonic guards with her weapon of choice. And given the day so far, every bit of practice counted.

After several rooms' worth of dispatching the undead, Gaibon was finally feeling confident enough to spread his arms and fly through any rooms with a high ceiling. This changed the team dynamic slightly. Before, he was best suited for dispatching ranged attackers and helping to finish anyone who was currently engaged in battle against Suzume. Now he was leading the strikes, covering the opposition with a rain of flames while she took down the stragglers and fire-resistant opponents. Either way, they were both doing their job and few of the creatures were giving them any trouble.

"You'd think this place would have more windows", Suzume grumbled.

Gaibon, who had been hovering just behind her, suddenly came to a landing and dashed to Suzume's side. Before she could ask him what he was doing, he reached for her arm, grasped it, and pressed her hand against the coin that continued to adhere to his chest.

"This is going to be inconvenient." Death's voice did not display anger, but his manner was not pleased.

"It was necessary", she responded. "Without his help, I can't..."

"I understand your motive", he interrupted. "I am concerned about the method. The coin was intended for you. You are likely to run into problems without it."

"Don't you think I know that?" She sighed. "Look, for me, it's a convenience. Right now, for him, it's a matter of life and death!"

"Those words have little meaning for a demon. Nevertheless, I will allow this." A short pause. "Keep moving. Shall I assume that you have not abandoned your desire to learn about these events?"

"Go ahead", she said automatically, trying to think of faster ways of walking through the hallways while remaining in contact with the coin.

_"I have heard", the nun resumed, "that there exists a man who possesses the powers of a vampire, yet walks in sunlight and does not fear purity."_

_The cardinal looked at her suspiciously. "You don't mean Dracula?"_

_She shook her head. "Not quite. His name is Soma Cruz."_

Death spoke emotionlessly now. "It should be apparent now that this scheme was created, not in support of my goals, but in fear of my responsibilities."

Suzume thought about this for a second as she led Gaibon down a hallway. "I'm guessing this cardinal would be the so-called master we've been tracking?"

"That is correct."

"Makes sense, I think. So how does Marcus fit into all this?"

"The cardinal contacted the church and requested the presence of Soma. The church in turn sent Marcus to find him."

She winced slightly. "So he was being used, too." A brief pause. "No flashback this time?"

"I pay considerably more attention to the dying than the healthy."

"Wait. You were actually _there_ for that conversation?"

"It is my duty."

Suzume thought about this silently as she and Gaibon continued through the castle corridors. Her arm was starting to get tired.

Death continued. "Soma had gone into seclusion by this time. It was his opinion that, as long as his existence remained common knowledge, there would always be men and forces of darkness who would seek his power." His voice had become bitter, and Suzume considered that he qualified as one of those forces. "The church had outdone itself. Only his close friends and a select few of the faith knew of his existence. How appropriate, then, that they would be the next ones to be tempted by the power of Dracula."

She sighed as she headed through the next doorway. "Even the church is imperfect, I suppose."

The next room was guarded. She sighed. Break time was over. She moved away from Gaibon, allowing him to resume his usual offense, and prepared her own onslaught. Death, once again, would have to wait.

* * *

To the average observer of a castle, it appeared to be a normal window, one lacking any kind of shutters or locks. To Suzume's eyes, it was a blessing.

Gaibon entered the room immediately after her. He was acting fidgety again. Suzume, noticing the pattern, pressed her hand against the coin again.

"I have pinpointed the location of the source." Death had apparently been waiting for her. "Head to my position without delay."

"I will", she said, and then released the coin. She looked up at Gaibon's face now. "Are you feeling well enough to carry me?"

Gaibon walked over to the window and looked upward. Then he turned around, staring at Suzume for a moment, and his view traveled down to the coin on his chest. Without any warning, he gripped the coin and pulled it free of the dried candle wax, and then held it out for Suzume to carry.

"Are you sure?" she asked warily. As she took the coin from his claw, he nodded.

She could not agree with his opinion. As soon as he released the coin, he started to lose his balance. Suzume's eyes widened. Despite his confidence, his wound hadn't healed. Whatever passed for a demon's blood was starting to ooze from the injury again, albeit slower than before. He was still weakened. He needed the coin. And by pulling it out, he had ensured that the wax was now useless for holding it.

Why'd he have to do something so hasty and stupid? Especially now, as Death grew impatient? How was she going to be able...

...a solution popped immediately into her mind. It would be awkward, but it would work if she did it right. Gaibon hadn't collapsed; he just needed a bit more time, that's all. This would help. Even better, it would ensure that she remained in contact with Death.

And, her mind told herself, you want to do this anyway, don't you?

"You still need this", she said. She reached out and pressed the coin back against Gaibon's chest wound again. Its effect kicked in quickly, and Gaibon looked like he was recovering already. It wouldn't hold long, though. She had to act fast.

Without another word, she stepped forward and embraced him tightly, her own body holding the coin firmly against his wound.

Her mind kept trying to tell itself that this was being done for practical purposes. Nevertheless, she ended up appreciating the moment as much as possible. Her arms wrapped around his back, tightly binding the firm, well-built muscles that the demon probably took for granted. Her hands briefly moved up to the back of his shoulders, feeling the raw strength within them, the strength necessary to allow his wings to keep him airborne. Her face rested against his upper chest, and she noticed that it felt warmer than the rest of his body, probably due to his fire-breathing nature. He could not feel his lungs inhale or exhale; perhaps this was not a necessary action for him.

Gaibon merely stared down at her, unsure of what she was doing, and not knowing how he should react. She looked up at him and spoke softly. "I've got my grip."

He understood. Moving as effectively as he could toward the window, despite the added weight, he lifted his wings and took off for Death's location.

Suzume was unable to view the scenery around her, her line of sight blocked almost entirely by her ally's pectoral muscles. She started to second-guess herself. Had her actions been equally foolhardy? How long could she keep such a grip? And did Gaibon know where he was going?

As if to answer her second question, Gaibon stretched out his legs and wrapped them around her back. She welcomed the added support, as well as the tension of his thighs pressing against...

"I hope that I am not interrupting your moment."

At the sound of Death's voice, Suzume's attention shifted immediately. "Does he know where he's going?"

"I am directing him. Do not be concerned."

She nodded. "So what exactly did the cardinal do to Soma?"

_A pale-faced man with white hair, dressed in a largely blue outfit, walked cautiously into what appeared to be a temple. He was escorted by Marcus, as well as a number of armored clerics._

_The man, who Suzume recognized as Soma, was the first to speak. "Why have you summoned me, Cardinal?"_

_The elderly man stood up from his chair. "I am ill, Mr. Cruz. The doctors say I don't have long. I wished to meet with you before God calls upon me for the last time."_

_Marcus looked at the man with concern. "I'm trained in the art of healing. Perhaps I can help you."_

_The cardinal looked at him briefly, and then shook his head. "No... There is no need. What I need is you, Soma Cruz!"_

_As he shouted this, a group of clergymen closed the gates behind the group and barred them tightly. Marcus turned in surprise. "Huh?"_

_Soma lowered his head in contempt. "So it is a trap after all..."_

"The cardinal had a plan for Soma", Death continued. "I do not understand the methods that he used, but with the help of his assistants, he managed to reawaken the power of Dracula within Soma, and then directly transferred it to his own body."

As he spoke, Gaibon reached his position. Using his scythe, he pointed in a direction of one of the tower windows. The gargoyle looked in that direction, nodded, and headed directly for it.

Suzume pondered Death's words. "I can't imagine what that must have felt like for Soma..." As she spoke, Gaibon reached the boundary of the holy field. Seconds later, the pair were passing through it, prepared to take on whatever menace existed within.

At least, before Gaibon came to a complete stop in midair.

Suzume looked around quickly. "What's going on?"

Gaibon didn't respond. His arms slowly stopped moving, and he pitched forward again. "Not again!" she screamed as he started freefalling toward the castle again. Above her, she could see the boundary of the holy field as they left it.

This time, she realized in horror, she couldn't get to his arms without letting go of him. With no better ideas in mind, she continued to hold him tightly and tried to rotate in midair so that she would be further from the ground.

"**Release him.**" Death's voice was firm and immediate. Suzume glanced up at Gaibon's unconscious expression, sighed, and released him without second-guessing herself. Now she herself was falling toward the ground, this time without any chance to protect herself from...

...she was being held. From her perspective, she saw Gaibon continue to the base of the castle, where he hit the stone in a painful manner. Even from here, she could see the blood.

She turned her head to find Death levitating near her, and she slowly came to the realization that he was holding her in his bony arms.

_Look what you've done. You put your faith in the bringer of the world's demise, and now all your allies are dead, and you are firmly within the grasp of death. Your fate is entirely in his hands._

Suzume groaned. Not this again...

"What just happened?" she asked hesitantly.

Death's body language was pensive as he stared at the gargoyle's body far below him. "I cannot understand it. The holy field has never stopped him in the past. This requires some analysis."

_Serves you right. You really thought you could align yourself with pure evil and somehow harness it to your own ends?_

"...can you put me down, please?"

He returned his gaze to her. "Very well", he said slowly, heading toward the tower wall. "You would be wise to notice that I just saved you from falling to your death."

"For what it's worth", she grumbled. "Just admit it. There's no chance in hell I'm leaving here alive, is there?"

"I will not rule out the possibility." He released Suzume on a balcony. "Nor should you."

"Your plan failed", she said dejectedly. "They clearly knew that Gaibon was coming, and they stopped him. Everything we did was for nothing. So now..."

"These facts did not escape my notice. This is why I am considering alternate strategies. We have not yet lost."

_He can say that. He's immortal. He has nothing to lose if he fails. This is why he continues to be a threat, despite repeated losses. You, though..._

"But we haven't even begun to win!"

"I admit that there have been difficulties. We must continue nonetheless. The vampires remain, and we are here to combat them. Surely it is possible to succeed if we have survived everything that has happened so far."

"No! We haven't!" She shook her head at the stupidity of his claim. "I've died twice! We just lost Gaibon, and it's been almost an hour since I saw Slogra! The only reason you're still optimistic is because you're an immortal force of..."

"**What am I doing wrong?**"

Suzume stopped immediately. Death had practically screamed his words. Before now, she hadn't even known that he could do so.

_Get out of there. Now. Go. Go. Run. Leave now. You pushed him over the edge. He's going to kill you. Save yourself._

After a moment's pause, he continued, his voice considerably softer yet with no less tension. "On every occasion when Dracula has returned to the earth, humans from the chosen bloodlines have been capable of battling and defeating him, with their only trouble being the tenacity of his minions. I do not understand why, when **I** am in opposition to these forces of darkness, I must deal with so much difficulty and pessimism."

She stared in silence at him as he ranted. He noticed. "Your mother was stabbed by one of her enemies. As her allies continued their mission, she spent her time recovering. Yet she never lost her resolve. A woman by the name of Carrie was forced to kill a kinswoman and learned that her potential romantic interest was secretly one of her adversaries, and she persevered. Even the legendary Sypha fled from accusations of witchcraft, spent her life disguising her identity, and was _turned to stone_ before she ever started the family tradition of opposing Dracula." He sighed. "What have I done to you that makes you unwilling to continue?"

_He has to ask? He set you up to die..._

"I don't know!" she yelled in frustration. "This whole mission is wrong! Every Belnades and Belmont I know just headed in and fought all the odds and was victorious! They never had to sneak around or plan or anything!"

"You tried the direct approach. You died."

"...I know." She sat down on the balcony. "And I know I haven't died since we tried your strategy. But we haven't accomplished anything worthwhile, either."

"You defeated a number of minions, including at least two of these vampires."

_Don't forget Marcus. He almost convinced you to kill him._

"I couldn't do it alone. Your demons helped a lot. I wouldn't have had nearly as much success..."

As soon as she started saying that, she realized its significance. Perhaps it was the answer she was looking for. After all, Death's stories were accurate, yet incomplete. Sypha was turned to stone, but she only continued on her adventure once she met Trevor and he broke her curse. Carrie would not have gotten as far without the assistance of a professional vampire hunter, a distant Belmont relative, and a few questionable sources of help. And her mother was surrounded by friends, including some who stayed with her, protected her and helped her recover once she was found...

She stood up and looked at Death. "I think I've figured it out." She smiled slightly. "I've had many successes. You mentioned some of them. With Gaibon or Slogra at my side, we were nearly unstoppable. We had our flaws, and we compensated for them. Those parts of the plan worked out."

She took a deep breath. "So how come I've never battled with _you_ at my side?"

_Because he wants you to lose. He wants you to die. This way, he can revive Dracula and keep you from getting in his way if you oppose him._

Death recollected. "I had my other duty to accomplish. More recently, I have had other tasks to handle at the same time." A glance at Suzume. "My presence would not have helped. I am capable of fighting the vampires, but I cannot harm the demons."

"Why not?"

"I will not answer that question. Such information is not to be known by mortals."

_He probably leads them. You've heard the stories. He's been undermining your mission from the start..._

Shut up, she thought to herself. He made that part of the pact clear. It didn't really matter to her, anyway. She had a more pressing question on her mind.

"So exactly what _can_ you do?"

His response was swift. "Considerably more than you realize. The trouble is determining what I am permitted to do."

She frowned. "That's conveniently vague."

He didn't respond. He was staring into space. Given his lack of facial features, this meant that he did not perceptibly move for the duration. It was unnerving to her.

Finally he spoke again. "Suzume... do you trust me?"

_Dumbest question of the century. He's all but admitted that..._

She decided that the question deserved an honest answer. "No. I can't. Not when you seek to return Dracula to the world. Not when you allow good people to die. And these voices sure as hell don't help, either."

"I did not ask you if you like me." He tilted his head slightly. "You mentioned voices."

"They're not really voices", she admitted. "More like... instincts. Telling me not to trust you. Telling me to avoid you. That coin helped, but..."

"Your instinct is to be afraid of me. This is normal." A brief pause. "I believe that it is preferable to the alternative. If humanity did not fear death, they would have less reason to appreciate life."

_Fortune cookie nonsense. He's trying to rationalize himself to you again._

He floated closer to her. "You hate me. You fear me. There is no reason why this should change." Without warning, he grabbed her by the waist with both hands and lifted her up directly in front of him. In her position, all she could do was watch him as he spoke.

"Yet I want you to accept me. I want you to admit that death exists in the world, and that many mortal lives are cut short, and that this is the way that the world works. I want you to notice that mortals act to prolong their own lives, and curse my presence, and sometimes improve themselves in the process, and yet the time of their demise comes anyway. And I want you to know that this is not a malicious act on my part, but a necessary one."

He pulled her closer to him, to the point where her head was inches away from his skull. All she could see was his eye sockets and the bone around them. A slight motion on his part would cause the two to come in contact. As if he knew she was thinking this, he moved her the last few inches, allowed her forehead to touch his own, and then moved her back again.

"And I want you to realize that I am here, directly in front of you, holding you in the air with my own hands, and I have not claimed your soul. And I will not claim your soul unless you do something to deserve it, such as dying, or betraying your word. I have not killed you. I have actually saved you from being killed, which you should know is an action that I do not normally take, because I agreed to perform such tasks as part of a pact that I have formed. Because I do not betray my word, either."

He set her down. "I will ask again. Despite what I am, do you trust me?"

She stared at him, at a complete loss for words. Even her inner voice was silent, except for one line that continued to persist. _He is Death._

Finally she spoke. "I can't trust what I hate and fear. Give me something I can believe and understand, and I may trust it."

"It will suffice", he said simply. Then his voice brightened. "I have devised another plan."

As she looked up with a hopeful look, he continued. "I have never tried it before, but I believe that it will work. I will explain shortly, but I must ask you to make a vow first."

Her expression became concerned. "What is it?"

"You must never speak of the words that I am about to tell you again. At any time. No other living being should be allowed to possess this knowledge. This includes beings that are not human."

"This isn't going to make me want to break the pact, is it?"

"It should not have that effect."

She nodded. "I promise."

He started hesitantly, as if he didn't know where to begin his speech. "I should have never attempted to lead this mission."

"Is this going to be one of those 'humanity must decide its own fate' speeches?" she asked.

"This is similar, but not identical. Do you recall the reason why Marcus survives?"

"Yeah. I talked you out of killing him." She paused. "That doesn't do a whole lot for your 'not malicious' speech."

"I did not claim his soul because I am forbidden from claiming the souls of living creatures. I did not kill him because he was not dying, did not pose a threat to me, and did not threaten the mechanics of the universe. Gaibon did not kill him because you stood in his way. Gaibon did not kill you because our pact forbade him from doing so." He sighed. "And I gave up on killing him because I found the situation infuriating and I decided that it was better for me to abandon his soul for the moment than to continue to be exposed to that farce."

She raised an eyebrow. "You thought it was a farce?"

"You once referred to me as one of the most powerful forces of nature in existence. This is accurate. Yet there was a deliberate effort to ensure that my use of this power did not negate the intent of every other aspect of the universe." His voice was rueful. "My existence in general is nothing more than a lengthy map of rules telling me everything that I must do and everything that I cannot do, with little space in the middle. And this mission has proven to me that I am trapped in this intricate labyrinth, and that there does not necessarily exist a direct path to any given goal."

"I can't imagine what that's like."

"In this regard, I suppose I am inferior to humanity. You can set a goal and accomplish it. Sometimes you cannot achieve it immediately, so you think of another approach that will get you there eventually. You are rarely in the situation where you are capable of achieving a goal in countless different ways and yet are not actually allowed to use any of them. If you seek to kill a man, you can kill him. There may be repercussions for doing so, but the man will still have been killed."

His voice was becoming tense again. "I once envied this. I considered how it must feel to be able to end the life of a mortal, not because it was necessary, but because I felt it was appropriate. I sought a workaround. I found it in the form of these pacts that I have been making, which would allow me to take actions that were otherwise not specifically granted to me due to the orders of someone else who could make the decision for me at my request.

"They did not work as I had planned. For every limitation I could bypass, two more were forced upon me. And then everything went wrong, and now I am in a pact with a man which consists of nothing more than my being forced to obey his every order, and this man decided to destroy the very mortals that I have been observing and reaping for my entire existence, and I can do nothing to change this." He shook his head. "I would not have chosen to become the enemy of humanity."

"Isn't there something we can do?" Suzume had blurted this out before she even gave it any thought.

"It is unlikely." He gave her a careful look, and then spoke again. "An opportunity may arise for humanity in the future. They would be wise to take advantage of it." A brief pause. "Do not expect me to be of any assistance at that time. I am obligated to oppose such things."

"But... what if we don't kill Soma? Won't that..."

He glared at her. "Do not go back on your word. The sacrifice of your soul will not be sufficient to keep him alive."

She glared back. "Is that so? What if I give up and leave the cardinal alone?"

"**You must not do that. He must not be allowed to succeed.**"

She shuddered. He was using that otherworldly emphasis again. She had never questioned it in the past. That was its intent, she realized, and he certainly didn't resort to it often. "Why? What's up?"

"It has become apparent to me that, regardless of our motives, the cardinal must be stopped by any means necessary. He has usurped the power of Dracula. I cannot forgive this. He has sent an army of vampires to slaughter humans. You cannot forgive this. And yet neither action is his greatest offense."

She shook her head. "You're being dramatic again."

"This is difficult to explain." He looked down at himself, then at Suzume again. "I will make an attempt. I want you to describe me to the best of your knowledge."

She looked at Death. "What? Well... uh... you're a skeleton. The top half of one, anyway. You like to wear cloaks, although I know you've tried a lot of costumes..."

"You are describing my physical manifestation. Describe me."

"What? So you're not..."

Death shook his head. "I suspected this. Would it be common knowledge around your church that the Belmonts have been able to destroy me through physical combat on multiple occasions?"

She nodded. "That bit always confused me. I mean, how could they possibly..."

"I have never been stopped so easily." As she looked at him in confusion, he continued. "Dracula has always seen fit to give me a physical incarnation when he returns to the world. This works to our advantage, as having a body allows me to interact with or attack the living. In recent centuries, this strategy was changed in an effort to make his resurrection easier. Any attempt to harness his power or remanifest his castle is sufficient for me to adopt this form now."

"So when the cardinal awakened Soma's power..."

"Precisely. Such bodies are products of dark magic and are vulnerable to divine power. Once it is destroyed, I am no longer capable of serving my master in battle, so my activities are limited to gathering information or returning to my official duty."

"That makes sense", she stated. "Things still have to die, right?"

"I do not require a body to reap souls. The scythe is purely part of the metaphor."

"Okay. I think I understand." She paused. "Why did you bring this up?"

He shook his head again. "If you understood, you would know the answer." His voice lowered to a grumble. "I suppose it would be faster if I simply impressed you."

Looking slightly upward at the sky, he continued. "Your mother spent most of her day taking care of official church obligations, then started asking other clergy members why she had received no updates about your status or the fate of the village. Your younger sister was tutored in her magic studies. Both are currently asleep in their respective beds. Slogra has successfully defeated the guards that approached him in the tower, and he is currently searching for stragglers and awaiting new orders as they are given. Gaibon, despite your suspicions, is not dead, and I strongly suspect that he will be rejoining us shortly, but I admit that this is based on my knowledge of him rather than my observations. Marcus is..."

Suzume, who had been eyeing him with interest during the entire speech, interrupted. "They're alive? That's..."

"We will discuss them shortly. Pay attention to my point. You have called me a force of nature. The term is accurate, yet you have not understood the depths of what it entails. I am Death. I am not an entity that claims souls. I am _the act of claiming souls itself_. I can recite the daily activities of Yoko Belnades because _I have been watching her the entire time._ Her and _every other mortal in existence._ My duty cannot be fulfilled without omnipresence. If a person halfway across the world is dying, I must be there to bring his soul to the afterlife. I am eternal, I am inevitable, and I _cannot be stopped_."

Suzume took a few moments to think about this, and then muttered. "...yeah. No wonder the powers that be wanted to put some limitations on your power."

"Yet, at this time, I do not know where Soma Cruz is."

"I can see why that would annoy you."

"It does not merely annoy me. When an aristocrat freed himself from the boundaries of time and ensured that I could not reach his soul, that annoyed me. When a vampire discovered a way to use art to create alternate dimensions that I was unable to perceive, that annoyed me. At this moment, we are dealing with someone who has _sealed part of the world away from me._"

"That's hardly a problem", she said. "You know he's somewhere in that holy field, right?"

"Consider your words. During the years you have spent in the church, have you ever heard of a holy power that was strong enough to stop me entirely? Not just to prevent me from reaping the soul of a wounded human, but to ensure that I could not even make an attempt?"

This caught her off guard. "No... I guess not. If someone found a way to do that, it would have been big news."

"I am asking you to eliminate a barrier. One that has proven strong enough that I cannot perceive anything beyond it, let alone pass through it. So that I can enter the chamber of a formerly dying human and claim his soul. And I am asking you to do it quickly and subtly enough that no living creature will ever learn that it has happened. If other mortals find out, they can repeat the procedure, and I will be prevented from fulfilling _the very purpose of my existence_."

Suzume's voice was a whisper. "You really do need my help."

Death nodded. "You understand now. I have devised an alternate solution, and I believe the theory is sound. If it does not work, I will continue to do everything in my power to help you succeed. For me, failure is simply not an option."

She nodded slowly. Then she stopped, and her voice took on a suspicious tone. "It's a bit convenient that completing this mission will also allow Dracula to be reborn, isn't it?"

Death sighed. "I expected better of you. If you must insist on thinking of my request in that way, then I shall remind you that you agreed to a pact with me and that I will reclaim your soul if you break it."

"...I knew this was too good to be true."

"Nothing of what I have said is false." He stared at a certain point in the sky. "If you must distrust me, at least accept that this situation needs to be resolved quickly."

"...if you say so", she said with some reluctance. "Now, what about Gaibon and Slogra?"

"Gaibon will rejoin us shortly. For now, I must pick you up again."

"What? Why?"

"We are still in a hurry. I have bought us enough time to prepare, but only if you will follow my instructions."

And he scooped up Suzume again in his skeletal arms. As she surrendered herself to her fate and followed his instructions passively, he adjusted her position so that she was facing downward, and her arms were stretched out. It was an uncomfortable position, but he insisted on it, so she obeyed. Moments later, she noticed that he was carrying her off the balcony and floating into the air again. From here, she could see the ramparts of the castle far below, as well as the spot where Gaibon hit the ground.

"Wait a minute", she said. "He hit the ground a long time ago. Shouldn't there be more blood now?"

"It will make sense in a moment", he said. "Open your mouth as if you are gasping for breath."

She blinked in confusion, and then did so. Seconds later, he adjusted his grip to hold her more tightly and uncomfortably than before, and...

...below her, Gaibon's blood was finally beginning to spread along the ramparts, and even his flesh itself was being replaced by its reddish hue. She was aware that there was now wind blowing across her face, and she realized that she hadn't felt it in a long time. She felt oddly short of breath, too. She turned her head to look at Death, who noticed her expression.

His voice was oddly cheerful. "Time has resumed. The past twelve minutes never occurred. I have just saved you from falling to your death."

She gaped. "You can _do_ that?"

"There are severe limitations. Aside from information transfer, nothing in the universe could change between the two moments. We could not move objects or influence other people, and we needed to return to exactly where we were before." And, in a softer voice, "Once again, no mortal being must know of this."

She nodded silently. Nothing he did would surprise her any more.

A few seconds later, Gaibon flew up to meet them. He was still bleeding slightly, and he no longer had the coin, and he was now red instead of blue, but it was clearly him. Her eyes moistened slightly, and her lips widened into a smile. He returned a mouthful of sharp teeth in her direction.

"His ability, on the other hand, has been documented frequently by vampire hunters. Upon severe injury, his body secretes a hormone into his circulatory system, which spreads it to the rest of his body. This hormone increases his regenerative capability and keeps him alive, with the added bonus of stimulating the physical output of his entire body. From the perspective of a casual observer, it appears as though he changes color and becomes stronger and faster than before. He can only accomplish this once per incarnation, and further severe injury will kill him. You may think of it as a second wind."

With these words said, Death placed Suzume directly on Gaibon's back. Gaibon, notably, had no problem supporting her weight now.

"So now what?" she asked. "What's your plan?"

"It has not changed significantly", Death replied. "He will take you to the same entrance as before, and you will find and destroy the source of the field. Slogra is currently making his way up the tower, and he will eventually arrive to support you. I cannot count on the fact that the cardinal has not moved elsewhere, but it will not take me long to find and reap him. The rest continues as before."

"That's it?" she asked incredulously. "That's the exact same plan! What about the fact that Gaibon can't pass the field?"

"That is the major change." He paused, and then tried to give Suzume as sincere a look as possible. "Our conversation convinced me of the flaw. I should not lead this mission. I simply have too many inherent limitations on my abilities. I cannot simply rush into this castle and attack the opposition. You can."

"You sent me on the attack last time, too. I still don't see the difference."

"Gaibon and Slogra are my two most loyal minions, and I have found that they are also quite effective at the direct approach. When I watched Gaibon react to the holy field, despite his earlier immunity, I considered a theory. In light of everything, I have decided that they, being bound to me, can somehow be subjected to the same limitations as myself."

He looked at Gaibon thoughtfully, then nodded in Suzume's direction. "This is why I am binding them to you."


	7. Life

**Chapter 7: Life**

Inside the holy field, the tower took on a more ethereal appearance. Every surface shone slightly more than usual. Colors faded in the ambient light. To Suzume, it felt as if the building in front of her was nothing more than a three-dimensional photograph of the highest tower in the castle, and the developer had overexposed it.

Gaibon approached the building without incident.

This bothered her. There was the obvious reason, yes. Knowing that he had reacted so inconsistently to the field at different times, she could never be completely sure that he would be able to pass through the same route safely later. But something else seemed wrong about the circumstances. It was _too _harmless now. She was easily traveling through a thick cloud of divine magic on the back of a _demon_, and a wounded one at that.

If this bothered Death, he certainly didn't show it.

Less than two minutes before, he had explained to her what he had done. Slogra and Gaibon were now her minions. What she commanded, they would obey. This seemed logical enough, but Death's explanation had continued.

She could focus her attention on them, he said. When she had tried it, her vision fogged slightly, and the image of Slogra climbing a flight of stairs in the tower superimposed itself upon her normal vision. From the way he had explained it, it sounded as though she could give them orders remotely this way, as well as monitor their actions. Slogra had first responded in confusion at the sudden change of command, but his reaction was temporary.

Then she had tried the same thing on Gaibon, and the result was a bizarre double image of where she was now, and she had cut it off before she got a headache. Someone with the expanded consciousness of Death would have not had that problem, she considered.

Gaibon reached the window that Death had identified earlier, and she climbed off his back. This room was unfurnished, with only a door leading to the central stairwell of the tower. According to Death's information, the focus of the holy magic field would be twenty-five feet above this room.

She looked back through the window. There hadn't been any more attempts to stop Gaibon. Perhaps he did not need to guard against attack after all. Thinking quickly, she checked on Slogra, determined his position, checked on Gaibon, instructed him to head to Slogra's position and pick him up, checked on Slogra again, instructed him to wait for Gaibon and allow him to pick him up, checked back with Gaibon and told him to meet her at her current position afterward. Moments later, she couldn't help but marvel at how natural the process had felt to her. She hadn't even spoken a word.

The last words Death had said to her before her departure echoed through her mind again. "Suzume Belnades, I trust you. Complete the mission."

She smiled at this. He had introduced himself to her that morning. At sunset, she had formed a pact with him. But now, for the first time since this incident began, she could truly believe that Death himself was on her side.

"You made it."

She turned around in surprise to find Marcus standing next to her. It took her a second to remember that he was still a vampire, and once that moment had passed, she noticed that he was not looking any worse than before.

She glanced toward the window again in surprise, and then back at him. "How did you get in here? I thought that field blocked..."

"It has never been able to stop any vampires from passing through", he interrupted. "The field was specifically created to repel Death."

That explained a lot, she thought. "The cardinal certainly seems to want to keep him away."

He smiled. "Good. You know who the master is. That will shorten my explanation."

"Can we walk as we talk?" she asked him. "I need to get rid of that field."

"I recommend you don't."

She shook her head. "Death won't be happy if I don't hurry."

Marcus looked at her sternly. "That field's the only thing keeping him away from Dracula's power right now."

She grumbled. "I don't understand why you defend the cardinal like this. I thought he wasn't your master."

"He's not."

"Then why protect him? He killed you and stole Soma's power!"

He gripped her by the shoulders and stared her directly in the eyes. "That's not true. Soma shared it willingly."

Her eyes widened considerably. "Are you sure? You're not lying to me?"

He shook his head. "This is too important for lies. Listen. The cardinal had a proposition for us. If Soma was able to share his power with him, not only would it provide security against Dracula's rebirth in the case of Soma's death, but his abilities could be used for the improvement of mankind."

"That's... a pretty compelling argument, really."

"Soma agreed. His power was awakened and spread with his full blessing."

"I'm surprised he did that." Suzume looked up at the ceiling, trying to remember. "Mother told me his power had been awakened several times in his life. Each time, he struggled to keep it from overwhelming him and turning him into the dark lord. He succeeded, of course, but still."

"He had no problem controlling it this time. When I spoke to him, he was still the Soma I knew. His aura was frightening, but not chaotic. I'd call that a perfect success."

"Or perhaps he's accepted that Dracula's power is part of him."

Marcus nodded. "It is possible." Then his expression darkened. "The cardinal himself was not so lucky. He was corrupted by evil thoughts, and so were the followers that he chose to share his power. Soma never thirsted for blood, yet they did. They looked for a source, found it in the men that had accompanied us, and struck them all dead and drained them." He was downright dejected now. "Soma objected to this, so they imprisoned him to ensure that he could not find a way to take his gift back. And then they offered me a choice. Join them, or die."

Suzume filled in the blank. "And when you died, Death showed up."

"He said he could help me stop them from causing any more damage. I was angry at what they had done, and I agreed without thinking." He winced. "In time, it became all too clear to me that this was really a chance for him to release all of Dracula's power in one fell swoop. That's why I abandoned him when he needed me the most."

"So you faced the cardinal?"

"I refused to kill him. Instead, I tried to purify him."

There was genuine sadness in his eyes. Suzume had never been in a situation where she had tried to save someone's life and failed. A healer's life was not always a happy one, she supposed.

He looked at her again. "The cardinal is not evil. Dracula's power has gotten the best of him. If we can simply return Dracula's power to Soma, this nightmare will be over." He paused in thought. "If I understand the process correctly, once the cardinal returns to normal, all of his followers will also revert, including myself. We can correct Soma's mistake and Dracula will remain sealed."

She raised an eyebrow. "But what about Death?"

"Do you know why I requested you, Suzume?"

That question had bugged her ever since she found out about it. She went with the first answer that came to mind. "Because you weren't strong enough to stop the Cardinal."

"No. If I used my abilities to their fullest, I could have saved him. That wasn't the problem. I needed to stop Death as well."

"Why's that?"

"They posed a threat to the natural order. If left unchecked, he would have killed them all. Dracula's power would have been released and none of them would have been saved."

She frowned. "He's never argued otherwise."

Marcus closed his eyes and shook his head. "I wish you could have helped me handle this problem before Death got to you. But he did, and he easily convinced you that these vampires were abominations that needed to be destroyed, no matter what consequences would result. And you agreed with this, without considering any alternate solutions." He opened his eyes and glared at her. "If you follow his course, they'll die. Maybe we'll die. And many more will die when Dracula returns."

She shook her head in frustration. "So what am I supposed to do, then?"

"I stand by my belief. This whole thing can be stopped without any more bloodshed, but only if you abandon Death."

She looked at him as if he had insulted her. "What? I made a pact with him!"

"That doesn't mean anything!" he shouted. "He's evil, Suzume! He'll turn on you at a moment's notice if it'll help him!"

"He's done nothing but support me so far. I've come further than I ever could've alone. And he has yet to abandon me."

"That's because he still needs you! Once it's over, he'll toss you aside like the worthless mortal he thinks you are!"

"That's not what he thinks of me! That's what he thinks of _you!_"

Suzume considered the tone of her words and tried to calm herself. "Look, I've seen what you've gone through. He told me his opinion of you. Betraying his trust at this time would be the worst mistake I could make."

He placed his hands on her shoulders again. "Don't you understand, Suzume? _You can!_ You wield the holy power of the Belnades clan! You carry a staff that can destroy vampires! I've taught you most of the magic I know, and I'll be there to support you! Death isn't invincible! Every Belmont and Belnades in the past has been able to stand up to him and survive! I know we can stop him and save the cardinal at the same time! I mean it! I believe in you!"

In the face of such enthusiasm, she was hard-pressed to argue. He had a point. No one had ever stopped Dracula without stopping Death first. What Marcus was proposing would solve the problem. Lives would be saved. Once he was purified, there would be no more need for a holy field. Even without Soma, Death would have to appreciate that there was no longer a barrier blocking him from his duty.

...and he had saved her life three times, and taught her how to fight, and entrusted her with his minions, and told her of things that he had never told any other mortal being...

Her voice was a mutter. "But so does Death... and that's why I'm still here."

And, she didn't say, you wouldn't be here without him, either. Instead, you accepted his help, and then betrayed him at your earliest convenience...

As Marcus opened his mouth to speak again, there was a soft noise in the background, and the room slowly darkened to a more natural color. He stopped.

"That's odd", Suzume said, realizing the cause. "The holy field is gone."

Marcus looked around, nonplussed. "They shouldn't take it down with Death in the area."

"Do they know he's here?"

"I told you. The vampires are not affected by the barrier. They've known of his presence for a long time now."

Suzume had begun to suspect that the vampires knew too much about Death's plan. The resistance she and Gaibon had met was proof of that. And yet they had not stopped her group. They merely slowed them down. But this was new to her. If what Marcus said was true, then she no longer needed to worry about why the vampires had sometimes been one step ahead of them. Now she was worried why, so frequently, they _weren't_...

"There's something very wrong about this."

"I agree", Marcus muttered.

As if to provide an additional opinion, Gaibon showed up outside the window, his claws carefully holding onto Slogra's shoulders. She noticed the pair immediately. "What's going on? Where's Death?"

Without any hesitation, Slogra turned his spear upward and pointed with it. Toward the top of the tower. Toward the cardinal.

She turned quickly to Marcus. "Death was getting impatient. Is there something else going on? Maybe another part of the plan?"

"I wouldn't know", he replied. "They never explained anything to me."

She shook her head and cleared her thoughts. "In that case, I guess I have to find the cardinal. Gaibon, can you carry me and Slogra at the same time?"

Gaibon looked down at Slogra, then up at the tower, then toward Suzume. His expression was uncertain. She understood why. It was a lot of weight, and he was injured, and yet he was stronger than before, so...

"We'll have to take that risk", she decided. "I'm coming."

"I'm capable of flight", Marcus said from behind her. "I can take you myself."

She looked at him and shook her head. "That isn't necessary."

"I'm serious."

"So am I."

"Are you sure?" Marcus looked at her evenly. "I don't want you to get hurt."

"That's not the point!" Suzume was clearly being frustrated by all this. "Look, you told me your theory. Death had a different one. And everything... all the stuff that's been going on, it doesn't fit either of them. I don't have a plan. All I can do is wing it."

"Then why are you putting your life in the hands of demons?" he asked.

"Because _I can actually trust them to do what I want them to_!"

Everything went silent, except for the beating of Gaibon's wings. Suzume realized what she had just said. Marcus looked downright offended. She wondered if he deserved it.

"Sorry. That was a bit harsh."

He didn't look at her. "I noticed."

She tried to sound apologetic. "Maybe you're right. Maybe Death is. But I need to decide for myself."

He shook his head slowly as he stared at the floor. "Don't make a mistake, Suzume."

"Everything so far has been a mistake." She turned slowly toward the window. "I just hope I can lessen the damage." And without another word, she jumped onto Gaibon's back. The reddish demon struggled slightly, and then slowly started making upward progress with Slogra in tow.

Marcus looked at the empty window as she left, muttering to himself. "I don't know. You may be right. Maybe I can't be trusted." He sighed. "But I've always tried to do the right thing."

He climbed out the window and levitated into the air, watching the skies above him. "And I won't stop now", he said, as if Suzume could hear him. "If you fall, I will catch you."

* * *

Suzume could hardly believe her eyes.

Gaibon loosened his grip, and Slogra dropped gently to the staircase below him. Then the gargoyle landed on the ground and allowed Suzume to climb off his back.

She had seen this view multiple times in the books. A long staircase, surrounded by no walls, backlit by the moonlight, connecting two parts of the castle. Every Belmont had told a story of a staircase like this one. Dracula had always had a flair for drama.

Gaibon didn't stand. With concern in her eyes, she walked over to his position and checked him. He didn't seem to be any more injured than usual. If anything, he had just exhausted himself.

She turned to Slogra. "Guard him. When he is ready, join me." Slogra gave her a quick nod, and she started the long trip up the stairs to her destiny.

A quick roar stopped her. She glanced backward at Gaibon, who pointed.

Suzume paused for a second in thought. And then she smirked. Actually, she was trying her hardest to not burst out laughing at the situation right then and there.

Gaibon had been doing the surveillance. He knew what he was doing. More than her, anyway. And she had forgotten something very significant.

This was not Dracula's castle.

She headed _down_ the staircase into the top room of the main tower, where the cardinal was last seen.

* * *

This room was no less dramatic.

The doorway led to a balcony that overlooked a grand circular room. Two staircases, each traveling a quarter of the way around the boundary of the room, led from the floor up to her position and the exit behind her. The only other entrance to this room was a small opening in the floor directly opposite her, the top of a spiral staircase that traveled much of the upper tower's height. A skylight in the center of the ceiling cast the moon's light upon the center of the room, which added to the ambient light of the candles that were positioned on the outer boundary of the room.

The outer wall of the room was also surrounded by vampires. All of them of the Somaesque persuasion, she quickly decided.

And they had seen her.

"Ah, Lady Belnades. I'm glad you could make it."

The man who spoke had been standing near the center of the room, close enough that she could barely see him over the balcony. She moved closer to the edge and looked straight down. The ring of vampires continued there, and directly below her position, a man with white hair was chained to the wall.

Soma.

"I'm sorry I've never been able to meet you in person before now." The man, who looked like a healthier version of the cardinal from Death's flashbacks, looked up at her with a smile. "You have quite a reputation in the church."

She prepared her staff quickly. There were too many vampires for her to fight directly, and their positioning would allow them to surround her easily if she moved in. Her best bet, she decided, was to stay at the top of the stairs and make them come to her. "Don't mock me", she replied.

"Why would I mock the woman who has helped make this possible?" He gestured to the room around him. "Thanks to your efforts, my plan is now complete."

Suzume started to second-guess herself, but responded nonetheless. "I'm sorry. I'm afraid I had nothing to do with Soma's arrival."

"You are familiar with the power of dominance?"

She nodded. "It's been explained to me a few times."

As if she hadn't responded in the affirmative, he continued. "Dracula possessed more than simply innate power. He was also capable of claiming the souls of the fallen to boost his own power."

She knew all this already. "So you're saying you've gotten stronger from the creatures we've killed."

"That was only the beginning. You should appreciate the amount of effort Death spent helping you and your friends." He grinned knowingly. "I certainly do. He was so busy opposing me, he neglected to put the usual amount of effort into his reaping.

"So I did my best to cover for his inadequacy. Every human, animal, plant, demon... everything that has died while you've been keeping him busy has given its soul to me."

She started slightly. "You..."

"Each time that Dracula has risen in the past, Death has freely given his reaped souls to him. Through our combined effort to eliminate the middle man, I'm proud to say that I've finally managed to become as strong as Dracula."

She muttered to herself. "He must have seen that this was happening. And I kept slowing him down... I failed him."

"Dracula was a great man, you know", the cardinal continued. "If he had not waged his war against humanity, he very well could have been their most powerful ally. Perhaps he could have even led them."

"Look." Suzume's voice had become impatient. "Why are you telling me this?"

The cardinal's face seemed friendly. "You and I should not be enemies. What I'm doing benefits you as much as anyone else. Especially now that you have brought Death with you."

If he's talking, she thought, she might as well figure out what he's planning. "It was my understanding that you didn't want him to show up."

"True enough", he admitted. "I wonder how much you have studied, Lady Belnades. Perhaps you can name at least one type of force that can keep Death from performing his reaping duties."

She thought about this. "You once said that divine power isn't enough, and there's no reason why Dracula's unholy power would hurt him enough to stop him. Good question."

"You were close", he responded. "It'll help you to know that holy power, used creatively, can bolster Dracula's power."

Her eyes widened. "So the combined power is strong enough to stop him?"

The cardinal shook his head. "You're thinking about this the wrong way. I'll give you one last hint. How was it that I could stop Death, but not any of my followers, and not even the demonic beast that brought you?"

He did stop Gaibon briefly, she considered. "Just tell me the answer."

"I am disappointed in you." Some of the vampires grinned to themselves as he continued. "Let me remind you of something you should already know. _Death has a pact with Dracula_."

It finally started to make sense to her. "You mean..."

"He didn't even realize this." His expression was that of victory, the kind of victory that no one could have seen coming. "The reason he couldn't approach me is that, using Dracula's power, I was ordering him to stay away."

She nodded slowly. "I see. Then you bolstered the effect with a field of holy power, weak enough to remain sustainable and have as much range as possible. And he mistook that for the cause."

"So it seems."

"Can I assume that you gave the same order to his minions once you noticed them hanging around?"

He gave her a slight smile. "You draw logical conclusions well, Lady Belnades, but you're not so good at coming up with the ideas yourself." He turned toward the other entrance. "Hopefully you can understand why I have no complaint with Death returning now."

A vampire entered the room from the lower staircase. He was followed by Death, and then another vampire bringing up the rear. As Suzume watched, the two vampires stood at attention. A short moment later, so did Death.

Suzume realized the truth. They had been too late. The cardinal had fully awakened his power, and now Death was at his command. As she continued to watch, he produced his scythe and held it above his head for everyone to see. She wondered just what he intended to do with this new power.

In retrospect, given everything she knew about the cardinal, it should have been obvious.

Death dropped his scythe upon the ground. The vampires cheered loudly.

The cardinal turned to face her again. "I present to you a world where Death is a slave to the whims of the common people. No one must ever die needlessly again. No one will have need to fear danger. Hatred will be fruitless. War will be meaningless. People will finally know peace." He gestured in the direction of the reaper, who was now on the ground in a supplicant position. "Death... is powerless."

She shook her head in disbelief. "This is your plan? Eternal life? For _everyone?_"

He grinned. "It sounds good, doesn't it?"

To some degree, she had to admit, it did. Death had mentioned humanity's latent fear of death. He had also argued that fearing death was beneficial to living a full life. Of course, he was working from the assumption that death was a necessity...

There was another concern. "What about blood? You still need it."

"It is easily obtained by feeding on the rest of humanity." He gazed into the sky with a dreamy look on his face. "Those who submit freely shall join us as heirs of Dracula, free to enjoy the wonders of our existence."

She continued to look skeptical. "Eternity is a long time. What happens when the blood runs out?"

"Didn't you pay attention? Death has been stopped! We can live without blood now!"

"Yeah", she grumbled to herself. "If you want to live like a vampire."

The cardinal gave her a sudden glare. "Don't knock it until you've tried it, Lady Belnades."

And suddenly she was tackled from behind by someone, and she went flying over the railing into the center of the room. On the way down, she felt a sharp pain in her neck. Her body suddenly started to feel weak, and the staff in her hand started to burn slightly, and the recoil of pain caused her to drop it. Then, as she was preparing to brace herself for impact, she realized that she was decelerating. As she landed softly on the floor, she was turned on her back and pinned down, leaving her staring up at the face of Marcus.

"...why..."

"Dracula's power stems from chaos", she heard the cardinal say. "In the act of claiming it, I have brought order to it. Those who share my power and become chaotic can easily be ordered if I so desire."

Marcus's face was frightened. "...no... what are you..." He moved behind her, lifted her head up, and resumed the process of draining her blood.

Behind her, she could hear the voice of Death. Somehow, it was less supernatural. In fact, to her, it sounded almost identical to the voice he had used when he had called himself Gregor. "No!"

Her vision started to fade. Before she blacked out, she heard the cardinal again. "That leaves one unfinished point of business." A brief pause. "Guard the door. If you find those demons, kill them on sight."

Despite her looming unconsciousness, her mind strained to contact them. "Run... leave..."

She would never know if they had received the order.

* * *

Marcus released Suzume, and her body fell back against the ground.

The cardinal turned to face Death again. "You see, my dear reaper? Your plan was for naught. Few can stand against Dracula. And this time, no one has any reason to do so."

Despite everything, he defied his master's words. "You are wrong. The world needs death."

"Hardly", the cardinal responded with a voice of disdain. "What man would choose death over life?"

"The man who is too old to walk. The man who cannot breathe without feeling pain. The man for whom life holds nothing else."

"Do you think I have neglected to consider this?" The cardinal paced slightly. "We are not relieving you of your duty. You are merely being reassigned. If they wish to die, we will command you to reap them. This is not a flaw of my plan."

"Do you believe that you will be able to correctly choose who lives and who dies?" Death's voice was filled with contempt. "Humanity cannot be entrusted with such a task."

The cardinal gave him a severe look and responded simply. "I would expect such words from the being that followed a lord who wished for all humans to die."

"You are no better than he is."

That had been a female voice. The cardinal stared in shock and turned to look at Suzume. She had risen to a seated position and was now looking in his direction. The bite mark in her neck was still present.

She opened her mouth to speak, revealing the fangs within. "Your army killed an entire village of innocent people. If left unchecked, they will do so again. And again. As long as it takes. You claim to be able to overcome it, but you are a slave to your bloodlust." She shook her head in disgust. "I hope that you do not intend to butcher humans when they will not actually die from it."

The cardinal's expression became furious. "Why, you..."

"And even if you give up blood, what is the result? A race of vampires, living a life of constant starvation, never quenching their thirst, with no end to the suffering in sight. Is this the paradise you have in mind?"

"It is still preferable to death!"

"Not only that, but your plan will eventually force everyone to become one of the undead or perish." She rolled her eyes at this. "Dracula wanted to end humanity as well. The only difference between you and him is that you are convinced that they will support your actions."

She stood slowly. Despite how recently she had been drained, she succeeded. With as much menace as she could manage, she slowly advanced upon the cardinal.

There was a latent thought in her mind. _Obey him._ She ignored it.

"...you are..."

"I am a Belnades. My blood possesses the strongest magical power known to humanity. We have sworn to stand beside the Belmonts to destroy the forces of Dracula whenever they surface, so that mankind needs never be subject to the misery that results from his unholy ways."

The voice kept repeating itself in her head. It was irritating, but hardly effective.

There was motion behind her. She charged enough holy power to knock a vampire down, yet not cause it any significant harm, and released it just in time to stop Marcus's next attempt at an assault. As he collapsed, she noticed that the other vampires in the room were not moving toward her, in fear of being the next victims. She smiled to herself. She was looking pretty damn impressive.

The cardinal started to panic. "This is not possible! Obey me!"

She traced a complicated gesture at her side with one hand, while sweeping the other arm in a simple yet grandiose motion. She applied the healing spell to herself quickly, and then released a small amount of harmless light upon herself with the visible hand. Image was everything at the moment, especially against these odds, and it appeared to be working. To the eyes of everyone around her, she had just cured her own vampirism with a mere wave of the arm.

Her next target was right in front of her. She continued to speak. "The power of Dracula cannot sway me. I have been charged, by both the light of purity and the shadow of death, to put a stop to your actions. It is time to stop the suffering! Your foolish goals end here!"

And, with a quick roll upon the ground, she scooped up both dropped weapons. In her right hand, the staff she had received from Marcus, certainly capable of stopping a few vampires, and the key to making any kind of stand here. In her left...

...only now did she realize the significance of what she had done. She was now holding the scythe of Death. She had seen him produce it from thin air minutes ago. He had once called it a metaphor, but in her hand, it felt like a true weapon. She could practically feel the sharpness even at the other end of the long pole, and the supernatural power throbbed through her entire body. She started to wonder if even she could remove the souls of her enemies from their bodies with a single slice.

She stood, holy staff in one hand, unholy scythe in the other, and stared directly at the cardinal.

"You are bluffing." The cardinal walked toward her, shaking his head. "While you may be a priestess without peer, you are not the warrior that you think you are. You cannot wield both weapons at the same time."

Her expression flickered. He was right, of course. She had stretched the illusion too far.

A quick glance at Marcus, who she had left flat on his chest, yet still conscious. "Use the staff..." he whispered. "Relieve him of his wicked intentions..."

At her side, another voice. "Wield my scythe", Death intoned. "End his existence now."

And suddenly, in front of her, a series of fireballs flew in her direction. She leapt out of the way quickly.

"Indecision?" the cardinal said mockingly. "That moment of hesitation will be your last!"

* * *

Throughout the history and legends of the world, many examples can be found of the concept known as the moral dilemma.

Some are more significant than others. In the case of Suzume Belnades, the question of which weapon to use against her opponent was a fairly minor choice. She could use the staff, or she could use the scythe. The question had practically been handed to her in that form.

The term "dilemma", however, is a misnomer. Its very use implies that there are exactly two choices. This was clearly not the case here. Suzume could try to use both weapons at the same time; the cardinal's criticism was valid, but it was still an option. She could drop both weapons and rely solely on her magic, or perhaps physical combat; granted, this would be largely irrational for her when facing a vampire. Even when considering practical options, she still possessed a spear that she had long ago removed from the innards of the corpse of an undead creature, which she had since realized must have been killed by the demon known as Slogra.

And even a choice of a single option does not automatically dictate the fate of the person making the decision. Suzume could choose to wield the scythe and destroy the cardinal instantly. She could also wield it and win only after a long-fought battle. Or she could lose. Or she could turn and use it on any of the vampires in the room. Even Marcus. Or, if she was feeling particularly eccentric, herself. She could even make an attempt to answer the age-old question of what happens when you kill Death and claim his soul.

In this case, Suzume chose to wield the staff. Many motives could be speculated. Perhaps she decided that she trusted Marcus more than Death after all. Perhaps she realized that she had never used a scythe before, and focused on using the weapon with which she had trained. Or perhaps she just really hated sharp objects.

In truth, her decision was based on the fact that she was right-handed, and it was more convenient to hold onto the weapon in that hand. No one ever said that a moral dilemma had to be resolved solely with one's morals.

Afterward, however, she would consider that it made more sense to purify the enemy, with the option of killing him later, than the other way around. Even hindsight can be victim to morality.

In the end, she had defeated the cardinal, largely due to the fact that he had not had much experience battling with his vampiric abilities, and ultimately adopted a pattern of teleporting himself around the room and throwing fireballs at his opponent. Perhaps there was a lesson to be learned about the extent of Dracula's influence. To his credit, he also possessed a few knives, treated with poison, and he had attempted to use those to catch her off guard.

And then he had stood again, and he had screamed that it was not yet his time to lose when he had come so far, and he had drawn upon the power of some of his souls to encase himself within the form of a frightening beast with massive claws and naturally hard flesh protecting his true body. This form change had been enough to convince the other vampires to flee, which had made Suzume feel much better about her chances of survival if she won this battle. And even this was not enough for him to stand against her, and the beast's form dissipated, and the cardinal's body was left lying upon the ground, nearly helpless against whatever fate Suzume had in store for him.

If it sounds as though the story of this epic battle has been rushed and left undetailed, it is only because the aftermath was considerably more interesting for everyone involved. A more significant and anticipated moral dilemma would finally rear its ugly head.

* * *

"I've... failed..." The cardinal spoke these words in a weak voice, and then he collapsed face first on the ground.

Suzume, upon her realization that the fight was over, took the opportunity to drop to her knees in exhaustion. Marcus took the opportunity to approach her from behind and hug her. "You did it!" he exclaimed.

She stood up again and turned to face him. While his face was cheerful and no longer bore any reminder of that dark expression he had worn when he was commanded to strike her, he was still a vampire. The cardinal's influence had yet to be removed from him.

And behind him, below the balcony where she had once stood, Soma remained chained to the wall. She looked at Marcus and pointed at him. Marcus nodded immediately and headed over to free the man that he had once been assigned to find and safeguard.

She turned to look at the cardinal again. He had still not risen. She was still holding her staff. The scythe continued to rest upon the floor. And Death... could no longer be seen in the area.

Behind her, she heard the sounds of Soma regaining consciousness. He had apparently missed the entire battle.

In her opinion, his voice was somewhere between surprised, friendly and subdued. "Marcus. I see that you've come to save me." A brief pause. "Is that Yoko's daughter?"

"Don't thank me", Marcus responded. "Suzume's the one who saved you."

She turned to smile at him and greet him, only to see a gathering of dark power directly in front of his body. It took on a more humanoid shape, and eventually revealed itself to be Death, standing mere feet from the prisoner. With a single bony hand, he shoved Marcus to the side.

"This will be our final meeting, Soma Cruz." His voice had returned to its full supernatural strength. "The cardinal is defeated. I will now fulfill my duty and claim your soul." He produced another scythe and brandished it in his hands.

"Is that my fate?" Soma somehow remained calm about this.

"Perhaps you will prefer it if I make my cut quick and painless."

_"No!" _Marcus shouted as he scrambled to his feet. "You can't do this! Suzume, help me stop him!"

And Death turned slightly to glance briefly in her direction. His meaning was clear. You made a pact. If you interfere, your soul is mine.

Suzume stared at the execution scene in front of her. If she was going to act, she had mere seconds to do so.

Behind her, there was the faintest amount of movement from the cardinal...

* * *

Despite the heightened amount of significance, this moral dilemma is no more complicated than the previous one. The repercussions, however, can be considerably more severe.

There are thousands of tales that can stem from this one decision. Many are unfulfilling, especially from the perspective of Suzume. There are a number of stories in which the cardinal recovers and strikes Suzume in the back with a poisoned dagger. In others, Suzume opts to stand up to Death, only to drop dead an instant later as her soul is reclaimed.

There is even at least one outcome in which Death's very existence is ended, and even though he does not live to see it, the "paradise" envisioned by the cardinal comes to pass. It is not pretty.

Given the amount of focus that Suzume has received during the adventure so far, perhaps it would be preferable to limit the stories to those in which she survives and lives out the rest of her life in something other than great suffering. The number can be lowered further by considering only the stories where the results of her decision are interesting and shape the remainder of her life, as well as the lives of her friends and allies.

From this considerably smaller pool, four conclusions have been chosen, and each shall be offered in turn. In no two stories did Suzume make the same decision. And once again, it must be emphasized that these are not the only possible conclusions for each choice.

Perhaps Suzume followed Marcus's advice, mustered up her courage and challenged Death.

Or perhaps she lived up to her end of the pact, right down to its very intent, regardless of the consequences.

Or she may have tried to find a solution that would satisfy everyone involved.

She may not have even considered where her priorities truly lie yet.

Moral dilemmas are rarely pleasant. Sometimes they turn out horribly. Sometimes things work out in the end. Consequences are always unpredictable. And most importantly, not every dilemma has a right and wrong choice.


	8. End 1: Fury

**Ending 1: Fury**

Suzume had hoped that this moment wouldn't come to pass.

It could have happened in so many other ways. Soma could have been killed before she got here. Marcus could have located Soma and saved him while she fought off the vampire hordes. If Death had realized the importance of her assistance, he could have even decided to show mercy at the critical time.

No such luck. The situation had worked out exactly as Death had anticipated when he had formed the pact with her in the first place. Sometimes she wondered if he had a foresight for these things. It could be argued, she decided.

The cardinal had been defeated, and it still hadn't been enough to prevent this outcome. Soma was still manacled to the wall, and Death was still moving in for the kill.

Marcus continued to protest as he attempted to stand up. "Suzume! I mean it! We have to stop him! If we don't, Dracula..."

And if I do, she thought, Death...

She couldn't wait any longer. She lifted the staff in her hand, pointed it at Death, and used it to channel a quick blast of holy magic at his back.

The spell struck true. While it was not nearly enough to do him any serious harm, he had been distracted from his intent. He turned to face her slowly and addressed her in a surprised and angry tone. "What are you doing?"

"This isn't right", she responded calmly. "We've stopped the cardinal. His plan has failed. Everything will soon be back to normal." She put on a pleading expression. "It's over. No one else has to die. Especially not Soma."

Death did not show any facial expression. "His flagrant abuse of the power of Dracula has been deemed sufficient to justify his demise. It is my duty to end his life."

"That's crap!" Marcus yelled. "You're just doing this to bring Dracula back!"

"Reminding me that I have _two duties_ to kill him is not going to prolong his life." He continued to eye Suzume. "I admit that your recent actions have done me, and the universe as a whole, a great service. In light of this, I am willing to overlook your interruption and not use it as justification to nullify the pact and claim your soul at this very moment." He took a step forward. "But if you wish for me to show you such leniency, you _will_ stand down and allow me to..."

Without a word, she fired another blast from her staff at him. He blocked it easily.

"No", she said as she glared at him. "You are not going to kill him. Not now. Not ever." She raised her voice and her staff at the same time. "I challenge you. I will fight you to determine who has the right to his soul, here and now."

Death tilted his head slightly. "I do not accept such challenges. I have never done so. If you truly believe that, I must wonder what other false rumors the church has spread about me." He glanced at Marcus briefly. "I was under the impression that you had tutored her."

Marcus looked at him defiantly. "You could always try new things."

"That is a ludicrous proposition." He looked at Suzume again. "It is clear to me now that you have no intent of fulfilling your end of the pact. Consider it nullified. Your soul is mine."

And, as Death raised a bony hand toward her, Suzume felt a jumping sensation in her chest, akin to nausea. A few moments later, it passed. She looked at herself, feeling just as corporeal as before, and then looked up at Death again.

It was unfortunate that his skull could not effectively express surprise. His voice did a good enough job expressing it for him. "Why? Why am I unable to claim it? What have you done to your soul?"

_Suzume landed gently on the floor of the room, face down. Before she could react, her body was forcibly turned over, and she found herself staring directly into the bewitched eyes of Marcus. His mouth was open, and blood dripped from his fangs. Her blood. She would not be able to forget that visual for a long time._

_He continued to drain her. When he finished, she would become a vampire, like the others. The cardinal thought that this would make her obedient to him. He hadn't considered that she might not be as manipulable as the others._

_Marcus had not possessed that kind of resistance. She couldn't hate him for succumbing to the cardinal's will. Despite everything he had told her, she believed him when he said that he didn't serve the master._

_Still, he had been a vampire before. And even before the cardinal intervened, he had expressed a desire to drink her blood._

_Back in the eastern tower, with the female vampire. He had undergone the same process, after all. Because Death owned his soul, even though he carried it, and he had wanted his freedom, and he had known that these vampires possessed the same abilities as Dracula..._

_...and if she was becoming a vampire... she would have access to them as well... including..._

"...the power of dominance."

"My soul is mine", she said confidently to Death. "I will not allow you to claim it."

"I had judged you to be above such dishonesty. My instincts were mistaken. I suppose I should have realized that you would take after your mentor." A brief pause, and his voice grew darker. "When Dracula returns, you will be among the first to suffer! Soma dies! Now!"

As he turned to prepare his next slice, he was blasted yet again.

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Suzume pointed her staff at him threateningly.

Without hesitation, he spun around, scythe at the ready. "You have insisted upon being a threat to my existence. Thus, I invoke my right to end your life myself! Your soul shall become mine by force!" And he floated with a considerable amount of speed directly at her, scythe prepared to slice. Four small sickles, drifting through the air at his command, accompanied him.

She shouted quickly. "Marcus! Purify the cardinal and save Soma!" Without a word of complaint, he nodded.

This was it. She was fighting Death. Such battles were standard for those who would oppose Dracula. She had heard the stories.

She frowned at this. She had always heard the stories. Every once in a while, she thought, it would have been nice to have actually witnessed some of the stuff she was going to do in her life before she ended up doing it.

The first lesson she learned, almost immediately, was that it was a bad idea to try to block his scythe. Her staff was knocked out of her hands and rolled to the outer wall. Thinking fast, she drew her spear. It was time to see if her training would finally pay off.

Specifically, training that she had received from Death and his most loyal minions. Anything she had learned, he would already know. And she hadn't learned anything else. She hadn't even used this type of weapon before today. This was bad.

She swung the spear a few times to knock the sickles out of the air, and then heaved the spear at Death. It bounced off his armor harmlessly. Hopefully, she thought, she could make it to the staff in time.

"A magical offense?" She could tell that Death was gaining on her. "You are no threat."

"Is that what you think?" she shouted in reply. "My family has never lost to Death before!"

"I have fallen in battle against Trevor Belmont, Reinhardt Schneider and Soma Cruz. Your ancestors accompanied them." A pause for emphasis. "Your family has _never fought me before_."

She grabbed her staff and turned. "Guess I'll be starting a new trend, then."

"You have no experience. You have little strategy. Challenging me was a waste of my time and your life."

"Yeah?" she yelled at him. "Well, I've got something the others didn't! I know what makes you tick!"

Death stopped suddenly. He stared at her, only briefly glancing at the others behind him. Marcus had moved from the cardinal to Soma's position. She prepared to warn them in case the reaper made a sudden attempt on Soma's life again.

"**...that knowledge must die with you! You will not leave here alive!**"

And, in a flash of rage, he dashed at her again. This time, he overdid his scythe swing, and she was quick to counterattack. Judging by his reaction, the staff seemed to have affected him more than usual, which she attributed to his carelessness. Now that he was visibly angry, he was making mistakes.

Backing off slightly, she tried to cast lightning at him. This did not seem to affect him greatly. Very well, she decided. She would continue to wallop him with her staff.

The sickles had returned, and they were giving her problems. While she was getting very good at dodging scythe slashes, she was receiving noticeable smaller cuts. Still, she kept striking as best as she could, and Death was starting to look noticeably weaker. That's how she had always fought with this staff, she realized. Once she landed the early hits, the rest was momentum.

And that's when a sickle caught her directly in the arm. She winced in pain and fell back slightly. Death prepared his scythe again, ready to press this advantage...

"Done!"

Suzume looked. Marcus was smiling in her direction. On closer inspection, she noticed, he didn't have fangs anymore. Soma stood just behind him, finally free of his chains. Near them, the cardinal was still unconscious.

She kept her eye on Death as she moved in that direction. "What's done?"

"Dracula's power. Completely removed from the cardinal. Returned to Soma. And sealed away again."

"Really?" She boggled slightly. That was faster than she had expec...

"_**What?**__"_ Death turned his attention toward the three men immediately and dashed past her. As she turned to follow his motion, she saw him holding his scythe in Soma's direction. And he was... doing nothing.

"You... you are beyond my reach..."

"Uninjured", Marcus said as he smiled. "Not a threat to you. No longer affecting the universe. He's safe."

"Dracula ordered me to..."

"He's not here", Soma replied simply.

"Gaibon and Slogra..."

"They listen to me now", Suzume said from behind him.

"I will not..."

"Get it through your thick skull already!" Marcus was shouting at him. "Dracula's not coming back! You no longer have the ability to bring him back! Just give up!"

Death stared at him coldly for several seconds. Then, without another word, the scythe fell from his hands to the floor. From Marcus's perspective, it was becoming clear that Death's body was slowly disintegrating. Perhaps Suzume's offense had been sufficiently effective to weaken it, or Death may have realized that he no longer needed to remain there...

And then he turned to face Suzume.

She had distracted him.

She had kept him from killing Soma. She had faced him in battle. She had pressed the advantage. Soma was beyond his grasp as a result of her actions.

His lord would not return. His duty was not fulfilled. His duty had not been fulfilled for many years. He had sworn to assist Dracula. He was still sealed. He would not be returning in a century. If he could not act, he would never see him again. He had failed in his job.

He had failed in his other job as well. The cardinal had been stealing his souls. He had attempted to usurp the position of the dark lord. He had attempted to duplicate the position. He had attempted to distribute it to every willing mortal. He had brought Death to his knees and directly commanded him against his will. And his command was to _not kill. _He had been told to _refrain from performing the very duty that he existed to perform. _The cardinal had no right to oppose that duty. And the cardinal had outsmarted him repeatedly to reach that point.

Everyone had outsmarted him. All he had tried to do was perform his duties, and the mortals had gone out of their way to stop him. It was not limited to his enemies. Every single ally he had obtained during his mission had abandoned him. He was alone. He had no master. He had no minions. He had no friends. He was not even in the castle that his lord called his home. He was surrounded by nothing but mortals. Mortals that opposed him at every turn. Mortals that feared and loathed him. Mortals that had subjected him to their every whim, despite the fact that he came into the world _solely_ to be superior to them, and to inflict the will of a higher power on them. Against the power of death, they were intended to be powerless. No hope. No escape. No chance of compromise.

He had compromised. That was why he was in this situation. He had been powerless to stop a mortal, and so he sought the help of another mortal, and that mortal had betrayed him, and only saved his own skin by offering the services of a more practical mortal. A Belnades. She would have been able to help him. And she did. And he had helped her. And he had made every compromise possible for her to finally put her trust in him. He had _brought her back to life, given her back her soul, instructed her in the ways of battle, risked giving away his position simply to keep her safe, led her through unfamiliar territory, spared the life of one of her friends, motivated her when she was close to giving up, entrusted her with his closest allies, and put his faith in her abilities. He had tolerated her imperfections, aided her in realizing her strengths, and he had never spoken a lie to her. To gain her trust, he had held himself to a higher standard, told her everything that she needed to know, some things she didn't need to know, and even things that she would have been otherwise forbidden to know. Because he believed in her, and he thought that she would help him._

_He had requested one service in return from her. And when she refused to do that, he had been polite enough to allow her to merely remain passive during the encounter._

_And, when the time came, **she had not even given him that.**_

_**She had taken everything from him, leaving him with nothing, and she refused to give him anything in return...**_

**"YOU **_**BITCH!**_**"**

The voice was unlike any spoken in the existence of the universe so far. If a mortal could look past its supernatural source, its loud volume, its emphasis, the amount of unbridled fury behind it, and even the profanity, there would still be a dark essence there that chilled to the bone. To Suzume, it had an unspoken yet understood meaning. The very essence of the end of life had a heartfelt wish for her to die. For her to be subjected to the worst punishments available within the afterlife. To cease to exist anywhere in the universe. To be so removed from his presence that a vacuum was left by her absence. Simultaneously.

_**"**_**I WILL NOT TOLERATE YOUR CONTINUED LIFE! I WILL NOT REST UNTIL YOU ARE GONE FROM THE WORLD OF THE LIVING! YOU PROMISED YOUR SOUL TO ME, BELNADES! **_**IT IS MINE! YOU ARE MINE!"**_

Despite her feelings of utter terror, she slowly raised her staff at him. "Then try to take it!"

**"YOU CANNOT FIGHT FATE! EVERYTHING THAT HAS COME BEFORE IS IN MY POSSESSION! EVERYTHING THAT SURROUNDS YOU WILL FOLLOW! I AM DEATH! **_**EXISTENCE ITSELF **_**HAS BEEN PROMISED TO ME! I AM COLLECTING!"**

"...he's gone insane", Soma whispered to Marcus.

The scythe flew into his hand again. _**"RELINQUISH YOUR SOUL NOW!"**_ And he threw it directly at her. It made a solid arc, covering most of the distance of the room easily. She jumped out of the way...

...as it lost altitude and came to a sliding stop a foot away from her.

She looked up at him. "That's it?" With some hesitation, she bent down and prodded the scythe with her staff, making sure that it would not suddenly rise to strike her. It didn't react. She considered picking it up...

Without warning, Death came rushing at her, arms outstretched yet unarmed. It was faster than she expected. As a reflex, she quickly snatched up the scythe and held it up in time to see Death collide with its sharpened edge right in front of her eyes.

Not even _his_ body could resist the sharpness of the blade. As she stared, his body split in two and traveled past her on each side, until one of his ribs caught her in the chest and she was knocked backward into the wall. Her head collided with the wall painfully, and she lost consciousness.

* * *

A field of pure black surrounded Suzume. She tried to reach out and feel around, but there was nothing within reach. Odder yet, her arm was completely monochrome. It was as if the color itself had been drained from her body.

**You are mine.**

She turned to see what appeared to be Death. He was no longer wearing his robe or armor, meaning that his form was that of a skeletal torso with long arms and his usual skull. The lack of color didn't affect his appearance significantly.

"Where are we? What have you done to me?"

**You are in a coma.**

She paused to think about this. "Better than the alternative. You were trying to kill me!"

**You deserve it.**

"So what does this mean? I'm still alive?"

**Not for long. You will not awaken.**

"...so you killed me after all." She looked at him. "I guess you're here to watch it happen?"

**I have no choice. You possess my soul.**

Suzume looked at him in confusion. When he failed to elaborate, she instead tried to remember what had just happened. He had shrieked at her, and he threw his scythe at her, and she had picked it up... just in the nick of time.

"...so... I killed you?"

**You destroyed my body. We have discussed this.**

"Oh. Right." Another pause. "Guess this sucks for you, huh?"

The form of Death drew closer. **My actions were deliberate.**

Her eyes widened. "You _wanted_ me to use your scythe against you? Why?"

**You own my soul. Your body is dying. Once it is dead, I will claim your soul.**

"...guess I can't help that, can I?" She pondered briefly. "That's not much of a payoff for you."

**All that will be left is your body and my soul. And then I shall wake up.**

As soon as she realized what this meant, her face went pale. In black and white, it was hard to tell. "...you... you want my body..."

**Correct.**

"Why? What's wrong with the old one?"

**In my hands, my scythe was a tool of death, sworn to bring a swift end to those whose circumstances called for it. In your hands, it is a weapon of death, prepared to destroy **_**whatever I see fit.**_

He had ranted, she recalled. _He is Death. Existence itself is promised to him. He will collect._

"You intend to claim the souls of everything?"

**They are mine. I am merely accelerating the process.**

"Everyone will die!"

**I know that better than anyone. It is a fact of life.**

She was becoming frantic. "That's not what I meant! Things aren't supposed to die yet!"

**For once in my existence, I intend to make the decision for myself.**

"But you aren't supposed to kill things randomly! They gave you a bunch of rules so you can't! You shouldn't just sidestep them like this!"

He moved closer still. **You did.**

She went silent.

**Humanity deserves this fate. **His voice was becoming depressed. **This opinion has nothing to do with the will of Dracula. The fact is that humanity is imperfect. I have never demanded perfection. Indeed, death itself is often evidence of an inherent defect. I even find some human qualities interesting and noteworthy. I earlier mentioned your sense of free will and ability to function without rules for every action.**

His voice became angry. **But it does not compensate for its major flaw. I cannot accept a population that is capable of creating rules to govern itself and then ignoring them.**

He moved directly in front of her. She had to tilt her head up to look at his head. **What is the point of forming a pact if there is no obligation to fulfill your terms?**

"...so I'm to blame for this?" She was starting to regret her actions.

**I offered you life. I offered you my assistance. And I continued to give you whatever I could as long as it was apparent that you needed it. Your only terms were to assist me directly and to allow me to kill Soma.**

"I couldn't let you kill him! Not when Dracula..."

**Then **_**you should not have agreed to the pact.**_

"You would have let me die!"

**You were already dead.**

Suzume tried to recall her thought processes at the time. She had just learned that he was not a man by the name of Gregor. As far as she knew, the vampires desired to create death rather than abolish it, and that Marcus had come along to save her in her hour of need. Most importantly, she had believed that making the pact was the only way Soma would have had a chance to survive to that point in the first place...

"How exactly do you intend to 'wake up' after I'm dead, anyway?"

**I can claim the souls of the dying. It is my understanding that your magic will allow me to save myself from dying completely.**

"But this is a coma, right? You can't just wake up when you want!"

**I can. This coma is self-induced.**

Her eyes brightened. "So I can wake up, too?"

**No, you cannot. **_**I will not let you rise.**_

She was his hostage, Suzume realized. Her first idea was to panic at the situation. Her second idea was that, if Death was responsible for her situation, it was possible to get herself out of it.

She tried her best authoritative voice. "This is my soul. You have no business here."

**It is your soul. I am unable to claim it. This is why you have claimed my soul instead. And doing so ensured that I have no other possible business.**

"Well, then, it's my soul, and I say that I have a right to wake up!"

**This decision may be made by my soul as well, and my soul is considerably more powerful than yours.**

It worked the last few times, she thought. "My soul is that of a _Belnades._ Evil will not be allowed to corrupt it. You cannot possibly defend against it."

Death tilted his skull slightly at these words. Then he looked at her evenly and continued.

**My soul is not evil. It has never been evil. If it is your argument that my body was evil, I will remind you that it was formed from the magic of the dark lord. My soul, and my existence as a whole, has always been divine in nature. **A pause. **You seem to have forgotten that my soul is also eternal and omnipresent and capable of claiming other souls. Your soul is indeed strong and holy, but it is **_**nothing in comparison.**_

And to provide evidence of this, he moved closer still. And closer. Much closer. Suzume began to realize that, in a featureless void like the one that surrounded her and her... soul mate, there was nothing present to serve as a reference for scale. Death continued to loom closer to her, his form growing larger and larger. Eventually he reached out a single bony hand and grasped her, and she came to the realization that her soul, in comparison to his, was only the length of his pointer finger.

He held her tightly in one fist and raised her to the level of his skull. **You are incapable of affecting my soul.** His jaw opened slightly. **If you consider my inability to claim Soma, perhaps we are even.**

She grumbled loudly. "So I'm completely helpless, then? What am I supposed to do now? When am I going to die?"

**I expect it to take several days.**

"Well, great. I'm a victim of the most boring evil plan ever."

**You do not know me very well. I have waited for decades at a time to fulfill my goals.**

"Look, maybe there's something I can do to change your mind?"

**No. I know better than to form another pact with you.**

Suzume leaned back as much as she could manage and groaned. This was sounding less like an attempt to create havoc and more like an attempt to guilt trip her.

* * *

These events appeared far different from the perspective of Marcus and Soma. As the vampires were gone or turned back to normal and Death's body had been destroyed, they concluded that their mission was over.

There were concerns, of course. Ever since Suzume had landed the final blow, she had yet to awaken. And while the cardinal had awakened, he was in great pain. Marcus came to the uncomfortable realization that he had in fact been dying when he had sent for Soma.

The next step was to seek medical help for the two. Even in his uncomfortable state, the cardinal remembered the location of a nearby village that offered a hospital, so the group decided to head there via car. The planning process never brought up the fact that the cardinal was directly responsible for the destruction of a village that would have been closer.

"Do you think Suzume will feel better soon?" Soma asked.

"I don't think she's eaten since last morning", Marcus considered. "We should do something about that."

* * *

After a while, Suzume began to realize just what it meant for her to have claimed Death's soul. Despite the apparent effectiveness of his scheme, its execution was not going to be particularly enjoyable for either of them. He would merely wait for her to die, and until she did, she was confined to this space with nothing but him as company. For days.

Death seemed calmer than before. She decided to try using reason.

"Are you really going to slaughter humanity?"

Death turned his head to look at her. **I will have the option to do so.**

"That's true", she admitted. "All of us have that option. Most of us don't do it."

**I am aware of this.** He paused briefly. **It is quite likely that I will limit my activities to a less drastic level. Perhaps my reaping will be organized in a manner that will allow the remainder of humanity to reconsider their actions and redeem themselves.**

"They're not too bad", she pointed out. "You don't really hate them that much, do you?"

**Sometimes I hate them. During such times, I often placate myself with the knowledge that they will die and I will have an opportunity to take out my frustrations on them. And explain why.**

"That's probably for the best. Anyway, it's better than getting as angry as you were..."

**I am still angry. I have a very good memory. I do not forget offenses easily. But it is considerably harder to remain irrational as time passes.**

"Irrational?"

**You hurt me. I want you to understand just how much you hurt me. If it is necessary for you to suffer and die to understand, then you deserve it.**

Suzume looked at him with a frightened expression. "Don't you think you're going a little far? I mean, you didn't pull this crap on Marcus!"

**You are worse than him.**

She frowned. "You really think so?"

**He too broke his word. He made a show of making up for his error by requesting your presence, and then used you against me as well. You are correct. He infuriates me, and I wish that I could have killed him when I had the chance. **He paused and shook his head. **But in the end, all he took from me was his soul.**

**He never went so far as to earn my trust before he shattered it. When he told me that he disliked me, I had less reason to change his mind.**

**He is easy to hate. I never wanted to hate you.**

* * *

"Her condition is stable. To be frank, she could wake up any minute now."

Marcus looked at the doctor. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely, Mr. Williams. She is in good physical shape. A bit on the malnourished side, but we've set up the equipment, so she'll be getting the nutrients and fluids she needs."

"And what about the cardinal?"

"He won't make it." The doctor shook his head slowly. "Between his illness and injuries, it's amazing he's still alive at this moment. I mean, we can't even seem to find his pulse any more."

* * *

Suzume had no means of tracking the time. She had been in Death's trap for what felt like hours, and she was not enjoying it. She hadn't even spoken a word for the duration, on the off chance that he might reply to it.

He truly hated her. And everything he had said to her was making her start to hate herself. She couldn't even bring herself to call herself the victim now.

**This may not work.**

He started the conversation this time. Maybe it was safe. "What's wrong?"

**You are recovering. You are not dying.**

She smiled slightly. "That's good to hear."

**No. It is not. You will be waiting longer.**

"How much longer?"

**At the current rate, perhaps we will need to wait until it is your time to die naturally.**

"_What?_ I'm only twenty! You really plan to wait fifty or so years?"

**I can wait forever.**

Suzume sighed. "How long has it even been, anyway?"

**I do not believe that it matters. Nothing awaits you. You will exist until you do not.**

"I just wanted to know..."

**Why do you continue to do this? Why do you speak to me as if I am your equal?**

"I'm just talking to you. Like I always have."

**We were allies at the time. **_**We are not allies now.**_** If you will not address me as your superior, I would at least expect you to speak down to me as your mortal enemy.**

She shook her head. "What good would that do? Honestly? It's obvious there's only two ways out of this for me. Either I die, and nothing I say makes any difference, or you let me out, and that only happens if I convince you." She looked down. "I gain nothing by hating you."

**Pay close attention to me. There is **_**absolutely no possibility **_**that you will convince me to release you. Doing so would cause me to lose the last things of value to me that I still possess.**

"What things are those?"

**You do not need to know.**

"Am I one of them?"

**No. Neither is your soul.**

"Come on!" She smiled at him. "You can tell me!"

**Stop that. Stop acting civil to me. It is better to admit that you hate me.**

"I don't hate you."

Death grasped her immediately in one hand and glared at her. **You should. I have ended your life.**

"You end lots of lives. If I hated that, I would have sided with the cardinal."

**You still fear death. Why did you oppose him?**

Her voice grew frustrated. "It wasn't about death! You keep assuming that! I opposed him because he was a vampire! He changed me against my will! His plan would have vampirized the population and made them suffer! I dislike death as much as anyone, but it is preferable to suffering!" She raised her voice louder. "You understand this! I heard your words to him! So why am I suffering in here when you merely wish for me to die?"

**If I could have killed you instantly, I would have done so. Instead, you reclaimed your soul and defeated me in battle.**

"Of course! I had to stop you from killing Soma!"

**You had no right to oppose me.**

"I don't oppose you! Don't you understand? I opposed Dracula's orders! He's the one killing humanity for no reason! _He's _the one I hate!"

**I am sworn to aid him. You could not oppose him without opposing me.**

She pounded her fist against his thumb. "Okay! Fine! I opposed you! I admit it! Are you happy? My family's been opposing you and Dracula for centuries! We don't want to die, so we fight back! What I don't understand is why you insist on taking this as some kind of personal insult!"

Death took some time to reflect. The void grew quiet again.

**In your heart, you opposed me. In your actions, you welcomed me. And you convinced me to conclude the latter.**

* * *

Marcus was trying to sleep in the waiting room when Soma motioned for him to follow him. "Something's wrong", he whispered.

"What's up?"

Soma's face was calm. "This place is getting a lot of business since we got here."

Marcus shrugged. "I guess so. Kinda odd. Why? You think there are some more attacks going on?"

"It's not the amount of business they're getting. It's the type." He pointed down the hallway. "Nobody's been going in or out of those doors, and I'm afraid that I can guess why."

"Oh? What's down there?" He checked a nearby map. "Just the morgue."

Soma nodded. Marcus winced.

* * *

"You didn't exactly allow it to work in my favor!" Suzume shouted. "Staying alive and preventing Dracula's return happened to be two of my goals! Heaven forbid that you could offer me a deal in which both could happen!"

**I do not possess any duties that do not involve souls or Dracula.**

"I'm saying that if you did, this pact probably could have worked!"

**The pact was your idea. You keep forgetting that. You are entirely responsible for your failure to adhere to it.**

"I needed to form a pact to stay alive! That..."

**I should have allowed you to die. **Oddly, Death did not say this in a malicious tone of voice at all. **If you had experienced it, perhaps you would have considered remaining dead to be an option.**

She grumbled. "You're not going to stop claiming that this is my fault, are you?"

**It is your fault.**

Suzume looked down at her feet. She could not see them. A large bony thumb was in the way, and beyond that, four fingers that curled around her body, holding it tight against the palm behind her.

She couldn't win. Death had the last laugh, and he was not laughing. She had betrayed him, and this was her punishment. And this time, there was no one who could save her.

"I give up." She looked up at his skull again. "My soul is yours. Take it. I have no right to oppose you."

**It is rather late for you to come to that realization.**

"You're right. We had a pact. I broke it, so you should get my soul. I know we both tricked each other out of it. It doesn't matter. As far as I'm concerned, we're even. Just take my soul now, as if I had simply broken the pact." She took a breath. "I'm tired of being dishonest, and I'm tired of trying to convince you that I'm not." She put her hands in a pleading gesture. "No one else needs to pay for my crime. Please reconsider."

**I cannot.**

"None of them cheated you! Just take it out on me if you have to!"

**You misunderstand me. I cannot simply take your soul when you ask. You are not dead.**

"Then kill me!"

**I lack the means.**

"Are you sure?" She looked down at the fingers that encircled her. "You can't just squeeze or something?"

The giant figure of Death loosened his grip and turned his palm upward so that she continued to lie on it. **This is a metaphor for your soul, not your body.**

"What about Gaibon and Slogra?"

**I cannot control them.**

"I can, right? Can't I order them to kill me?"

**You are incapable of doing so at the moment. If you were conscious, it would be a possibility.**

"Then let me do so! It'll be quicker that way!"

**If I allow you to awaken, you will have an opportunity to escape me. I do not trust you. We wait.**

"Fine. Be that way." She adjusted herself to a casual sitting position. "What have they been doing, anyway? I lost track."

**I cannot tell you.**

"You can't, or you won't?"

**You claimed my soul. I am bound to your body. I am incapable of looking for them.**

"Oh", she said sadly. "That's kinda lame."

A few moments passed in silence. Then she suddenly sat up in surprise. "You're stuck here?"

**Until you die, at the very least.**

"So you really can't do anything right now? That seems a bit extreme."

**I admit to being less than rational when I formulated this plan.**

"That's for su... um... wait. Does that mean... you haven't been doing any other duties? Not even reaping?"

**That is correct. No one has died since we battled.**

She stared at him in shock. "...okay, this plan is just wrong. How long has it been?"

**I do not know. **He turned his skull to look away from her. **It was easier to rationalize this plan when I believed that it would come to pass in under a week. I thought that it might dissuade humanity from ever following the example set forth by the cardinal. **He looked at her, and she could sense his depression. **Fifty years could be entirely too long for them.**

"Uh... yeah... a bit." She thought for a second, and then resumed. "What about once I die? Can you even catch up?"

**I will be able to reap as I please.**

"Thank God for small favors, then. My body could never handle all that work."

Death's voice was hesitant. **My words referred to your body and my new freedom. My soul will not...**

And he became completely quiet, staring off into space, his jawbone open. Suzume got the distinct impression that he had not actually considered this. Indeed, if his soul was still trapped in her body, it would be physically impossible for him to perform his duty on a global scale... leading to exactly what the cardinal had planned...

He realized the same thing, she noticed. **The plan is fatally flawed. I must abandon it entirely. You will get your wish.**

"Really? You're going to release me?"

The skull glared at her. **No. I am abandoning the idea of using your body. I am not releasing you.**

She sighed. So much for hope. "Then what's going to happen to me?"

**I will remain here until I can reap you in a manner that allows me to vacate your body. My soul will be freed, and I will reassume my duties.**

"It'll still be too many years without reaping! Just let me go! I'll make sure your soul gets freed! I promise!

**That is unacceptable. I cannot trust your word.**

"You're being stupid! Yes, I know I broke my vow! It doesn't matter! I can still keep a promise! This is too important for me not to! Just trust me!"

**No. You do not fully understand how dangerous your potential for insincerity can be.**

* * *

"Do you think they're conscious?" Marcus asked Soma.

"I do not know. Either way, they are suffering."

"Do you think Death is gone?"

"It's possible." Soma hesitated. "I can think of a solution, but I would rather avoid it if possible."

"What are you... oh. Yeah, I see your point."

"Suzume's coma may be connected. We should wait until she regains consciousness. Or dies, if it is her fate. Otherwise we may be running a needless risk."

Marcus nodded. "Agreed."

Soma sighed. "It will be our last resort. If Death will not claim souls... we will have no choice but to trust in the power of dominance."

* * *

Suzume rested on what passed for ground in this void. Death had turned his attention away from her without explaining his objections. This bothered her greatly.

This couldn't just be his hatred or distrust of her. He had explained those things fully. She was missing something important. Maybe if she could figure it out, she could finally escape her fate. It no longer mattered to her if it was via death or freedom. She just wanted this to end. And, she realized, so did Death.

Across the void, Death's attention suddenly snapped upward. She didn't know why at first, until she suddenly got the distinct feeling that she needed to be released.

**I cannot. You know why.**

His manner was surprisingly cautious and frightened, she noticed. It must have been because he had been neglecting his duty, and humans were not dying when they should, and this could not be tolerated.

**Help me. Spare me from this fate, and I shall continue to serve without complaint.**

Suzume's eyes widened. He had described his actions as fulfilling someone's will, and not just Dracula's. Was the entity responsible for his duty present? Could it be God, or someone else?

It didn't matter. His demands would not be met. He brought the pacts on himself. He would be forced to fulfill them, no matter what. He would continue to serve Dracula, and Soma would continue to live. And as for Suzume...

Death suddenly vanished from sight.

She wasn't sure what this meant. Had he been released from her unwilling captivity? Could she finally awaken? She tried, only to fail. She could not wake up just yet, she realized. There was something important that had to be addressed first.

"What's that?", she asked, starting to get the handle on how this conversation worked. It was simple, she realized. It was the fact that she had been told certain things by Death. Things, he had said, that no living creature should ever hear.

"I haven't told anyone", she said, and she knew this, and she was aware that this was the only reason why she continued to exist in the universe. But this would not be enough to save her from her fate.

She tried to protest. She had made a promise. She would have never told anyone. And it became entirely too apparent to her that there had once been a time when Death had been equally certain of this...

* * *

And then Suzume woke up.

_"Suzume!" _Before she had even started to sit up, Marcus had practically thrown himself on her body and wrapped her in an embrace. Behind him, she could see Soma looking at her, his eyes full of relief. And around them, what appeared to be a hospital room, where she was lying in a bed, with various tubes and machinery connected to her body.

"Marcus!" As he released her, she could tell that he had tears in his eyes. She was almost as happy. "It's good to see you, too!"

"When you didn't get up after the battle, we were so worried! You've been out for four days!"

She paused to think about this. "I defeated Death, didn't I? Soma's still here..."

"I must thank you for that", Soma said as he approached her and also gave her a hug. "We were concerned. There was a certain... lack of death after your battle. We thought maybe you'd gone too far..."

She shuddered at this. "I'd hate for the cardinal to get his wish." She looked around. "What does that mean?"

"Nothing", he continued. "A lot of people died at the same time a few minutes ago. Whatever the problem was, it's over now."

As she breathed a sigh of relief, Marcus interjected. "So what happened? Was there more to your fight than we thought? What was Death doing?"

She shook her head. "I just beat him. I don't know if there was more to it than that."

He nodded. "I really want to thank you for helping me. You had me worried for a long time. I couldn't imagine him getting his hands on Soma. If you had let him..."

"It wouldn't be right", she said. "I can't just let the bad guys win. I had to stop Dracula's return."

"I know. But even I have to admit that he was kinda persuasive. If you had acknowledged his offer..."

Suzume looked at him, and shook her head. "No. There was no offer."

Marcus smiled. "I guess you're right. There's no reason why anyone else should know."

"Marcus told me about it", Soma added. "It's probably better that we not inform the church. It's bad enough what the cardinal did. It wouldn't help if they heard about you forming that kind of pact with Death."

"What?" She glared at him. "I'm not that kind of person!"

"Exactly", Marcus agreed. "We need to put this whole thing behind us."

"Seriously! What the hell are you talking about?" Suzume's voice had risen. "I didn't even see the freaking reaper until the time that I stopped the cardinal. Why do you keep acting like he somehow tried to influence me?"

Marcus stared at her. "What? Why are you getting upset? I know what happened! I was there! Even I have to admit that he helped you along the way!"

"_Stop it!" _she shouted. "Stop saying that crap! It's not funny! After everything you taught me, I can't believe you think I could be tempted by the words of Dracula's servant!"

"Suzume." Soma's voice was suddenly concerned. "Is there something wrong?"

Marcus didn't pay attention to him. "And then those demons helped you..."

"Shut up! _Shut up!_" She was in tears now. "_It's not true!_ Stop accusing me of betraying the church! I didn't do it! _Believe me! _I'd remember it if I did!"

**An End**


	9. End 2: Vow

**Ending 2: Vow**

Suzume had hoped that this moment wouldn't come to pass.

It could have happened in so many other ways. Soma could have been killed before she got here. Marcus could have located Soma and saved him while she fought off the vampire hordes. If Death had realized the importance of her assistance, he could have even decided to show mercy at the critical time.

No such luck. The situation had worked out exactly as Death had anticipated when he had formed the pact with her in the first place. Sometimes she wondered if he had a foresight for these things. It could be argued, she decided.

The cardinal had been defeated, and it still hadn't been enough to prevent this outcome. Soma was still manacled to the wall, and Death was still moving in for the kill.

Marcus continued to protest as he attempted to stand up. "Suzume! I mean it! We have to stop him! If we don't, Dracula..."

And if I do, she thought, Death...

She lowered her staff. "Do it", she said quietly.

Soma stared at her with an inquisitive look in his eyes. Death noticed this and elaborated. "She formed a pact with me. I aided her in battling the vampires. She is now required to let me kill you."

Soma nodded slowly. "I see."

"It was the only way", Suzume added.

"You're making a terrible mistake!" Marcus was frantic. "If you don't stop him..."

Suzume stared straight ahead at Death. She didn't like how everything had turned out. But she had agreed to the pact, and she was not going to let it go uncompleted. Not after she had come this far.

Death raised his scythe over his head and floated toward Soma. He stared at the man for several seconds, and then spoke again in an annoyed voice. "I cannot do it. Someone is resisting."

Suzume became aware of the movement behind her. Turning quickly, she found that the cardinal was not only conscious, but had raised a hand toward Death's position. He must still retain his control, Suzume thought.

This would not do. She quickly ran to where she had dropped her own scythe, picked it up, and tested its weight in her hands. Then, without much warning, she dashed back toward where she had been standing before, building up momentum in a horizontal swing around her body, and planted the blade firmly into the cardinal's body.

Marcus gasped. "Suzume!"

As she watched the cardinal's body fall to the ground, completely void of life now, she stepped away slightly. "I had to do it", she said quickly. "He was interfering with Death's duty again. If he cannot learn his lesson..."

"He was corrupted by Dracula!" Marcus sounded upset. "We should have purified him!"

"I must thank you again, Suzume." Death said as he looked over his shoulder to face her. "You have performed your duties exceptionally well." He looked at Soma again. "I will... never..."

He never finished his sentence. Soma was glaring at him now, his chains rattling slightly. "The cardinal gave his life to protect me. As long as I own the same power of dominance that he wielded in my name, I will not allow you to strike me down."

Death tried to bring the scythe down. He couldn't force his body to do it. As his body language grew less powerful, he lowered the farming implement to his side. "No", he whispered. "I was... so close..."

Suzume thought about the situation. Death was finding himself unable to kill his target. As long as Soma resisted, Dracula would never be reborn. And she had done nothing to break the pact. Perhaps this would be the proper time to back down and admit defeat.

Many words, spoken to her long ago, reentered her mind.

_Under this pact, we agree to work together to achieve our common goal of eliminating the master of this castle, as well as any other vampires who serve him or share his power._

_This pact shall remain in effect until the time that the vampiric threat is over and Soma is deceased._

_Upon discovering the entity known as Soma Cruz, I shall be allowed to exercise my right to end his existence._

The cardinal was the master of the castle, and Soma effectively shared his power. Death had a right to end his existence, and he was not being allowed to use it. And the pact would not effectively be over until...

Her instincts shouted at her, ordering her to get such thoughts out of her head. Her logic told her that she had yet to disobey any demand that was specifically asked of her. And yet something continued to gnaw at her mind, saying that she had to act now...

She acted on impulse, dashing forward with her scythe in her hand. "If he is unable to kill Soma, then I have no choice but to do so myself!"

Death turned his head to look at her. Soma stared at her with a worrisome look. Marcus started to tremble slightly, his face aghast in shock.

"...what the _hell_?" Marcus got to his feet. "Suzume, have you gone _insane?_"

"No", she responded simply. "I agreed to a pact. No matter how the terms were phrased, the intent was perfectly clear. Death is going to claim Soma. And I am obligated to help him."

"But... you don't have to! You never agreed to kill him yourself!"

"If I don't kill him, the pact will be unfulfilled. I don't like it, either, but I must do this."

"That's bull..."

Suzume pointed her staff at him, cutting him off. "I am also obligated to help him kill the vampires. You gave me this staff. It occurs to me that you are still vulnerable to its power. If you try to stand in my way, I _will_ use it."

His expression became bitter. "Is this how you repay me for everything I've done for you?"

"This isn't about you. I owe my success to Death as well. It's time for me to repay him."

Soma, who had remained silent during these lines, finally spoke. "I won't allow this!" With a sudden motion, the chains that held him against the wall broke.

Death's body visibly shuddered at this. Suzume picked up on what had happened quickly. Upon the death of the cardinal, Soma must have regained the power that he had shared earlier. And if the cardinal had become as strong as Dracula, Soma would be an even tougher match.

"I don't know what logic you used when you made this deal", Soma continued, "but I'm not going down without a fight!"

She raised her scythe. "Then I'll give you one!"

"_Stop!_" Marcus was distraught. "You're being irrational!"

"No", Death said as he moved away from the two. "She is not. She knows how to keep a vow."

* * *

_A number of years later..._

While the small building was sufficiently off the main thoroughfare of town to go largely unnoticed by the population, it was hard to call it hidden. The window display was stocked with various enchanted artifacts alongside some perfectly mundane items that could have been bought at a Halloween shop. A sign reading "OPEN" had been placed on the opposite side of the glass. And the sign on the door clearly read "Professional Witch" in large letters.

A lady who appeared to be in her mid-40s approached the front door cautiously. Moving her package from one arm to the other, she slowly turned the handle and was granted entrance to the shop.

The interior was not very well lit, except for sporadically-placed candles. A number of bookshelves rested against the back wall, but the lady was unable to tell if they were spellbooks or other reading material. The smell of chemicals filled the air, but most of them were decidedly not magical.

Eventually the owner, a young woman who appeared to be just out of her teens, appeared from between some of the shelves. "May I help..."

There was an awkward silence for a second, and then it passed. "May I help you?"

The older lady gestured in the direction of the door. "The sign says you're a witch. Would you happen to know anything about healing?"

The witch kept a suspicious eye on her. "What did you have in mind?"

The lady rolled up one of her sleeves to reveal that her arm had a particularly nasty-looking scar on it. "I have yet to meet a doctor that can seem to cure this injury. I thought that perhaps your magic..."

"Okay, cut the crap", the witch said. "You're a magician, too. You have the aura of a church-trained priestess. As someone of that position, you must be able to tell that I have a similar one. And, if you know about my aura, you know that I can detect yours. So stop beating around the bush. Why are you really here?"

The lady nodded, but did not lose her composure. "I have a package addressed to Suzume Belnades. I tried to track her..."

The witch glared at her. "We do _not_ use that name in this establishment. If you must speak of her, refer to her as the fallen Belnades."

The lady was taken aback. "Fallen?"

"That's an unusual scar you have there. If it was my guess, I'd say it was caused by dark magic. Quite possibly by the dark lord Dracula himself." The witch shook her head in anger. "As a member of the church, you must know this. He would have never returned if not for the fallen Belnades."

* * *

Soma fell to his hands and knees.

Suzume stood over him, still holding her scythe. She had found it far more comfortable to wield than she had expected. Even though it was weighted heavily on one side, it had been designed for smooth swinging, and Suzume took to it quickly. Not even Soma's repertoire of soul-related attacks and defenses could stand up to her offense.

It was possible that Death's words from earlier were true, and he was holding back because he considered her to be a friend. She frowned at the idea. His life was very much on the line. He shouldn't do that.

And then something completely unexpected happened.

The aura around Soma, already becoming erratic during the battle, suddenly exploded chaotically. As she watched silently, he returned to a standing position, and then it appeared to her that he was continuing to rise even when he had reached a vertical position. His clothing ripped, replaced by oversized muscles. His hands and feet suddenly grew large claws, each looking dangerous enough to slice through a person in one swipe. His head readjusted, growing a mouthful of sharp teeth and an extended jaw to hold them. Horns and wings sprouted, completing the transformation.

He now towered over her, a twenty-foot personification of pure demonic evil. Suzume had read of creatures similar to this, often from Belmonts who were describing the form taken by Dracula once the fight started to draw to a close.

Before she could come to her senses, the demon spread its wings and took to the air. It headed directly for the skylight that formed the center of the ceiling, and seconds later the structure had shattered into pieces, raining debris upon her.

She could have sworn that she heard his voice as he disappeared beyond the ceiling. Something about "stay away from me"...

* * *

The witch applied the curative spell to the lady's injury, and the wound began to close almost immediately.

"You have an incredible talent", the lady said as the feeling of warmth faded into a memory. "You should advertise yourself as a healer instead of a witch."

The witch shook her head. "Healing is a maligned profession in this day and age. People believe you can save their lives, and then they blame you when they learn that you can't stop them from dying entirely." She looked at the lady again. "Minor injuries like yours, that's different. It's the least I could do, considering you wasted your time coming here."

The lady looked at her oddly. "I'd hardly call it a waste."

"The fallen Belnades fell in more ways than one. She died."

* * *

"Suzume!" Death's voice was insistent. "Do not allow him to escape!"

"Stop!" Marcus disagreed immediately. "It's over. He's gone. Let him go. There's nothing more you can do."

Suzume continued to stare up at the skylight, and then turned her attention to Death. "He's right. I can't follow him." She walked up to him and held out the scythe for him to reclaim. "I have no more use for this." She closed her eyes. "I hope I haven't failed to uphold my side of the bargain."

Death stared at her for a moment, and then looked up briefly to look at the broken skylight. "We are not yet out of options. You have Gaibon."

She had forgotten about him, she realized. Her attention turned to his position, and she discovered that he had taken refuge near the western tower with Slogra when she had told them to flee.

She immediately ordered Gaibon to head to her location. Having a second thought immediately afterward, she told him to bring Slogra as well. Then she returned her attention to the room around her. "They will arrive shortly."

Death nodded. "Very good."

"_Stop this!_" Marcus was an emotional wreck at this time. "Don't... you can't... you... _stop now! You're killing everyone!_"

Just before she could respond to his criticism, Gaibon arrived. As he dropped Slogra to the ground, she prepared the next orders. He would carry her and they would track Soma's new form. They needed to figure out the easiest way for her to swing the scythe without potentially striking her escort...

"If you don't stop this, Suzume, _I will!_"

Her train of thought derailed from giving orders, she turned to face her mentor, only to stare in shock as the knife that he had thrown plunged into her chest.

Her face frozen in surprise, she stared him in the eyes, and then looked down at the hilt. It was of the same design as the knives the cardinal had carried. He must have taken it from his...

Her vision began to blur...

Those knives had been poisoned, she recalled...

Death gave a shout of surprise...

Everything faded...

* * *

The old lady shook her head. "I don't believe you."

"It is no lie", the witch insisted. "Her mentor fatally stabbed her, and Death claimed her soul."

"But that's not the end of the story, is it?" The lady gave the witch an accusing glare. "If it was, Suzume, you wouldn't be telling it to me today."

The witch's expression soured slightly.

* * *

Death gave the priest a severe look. "I never suspected that you would willfully kill your own student." He shook his head. "Is this what the church teaches humanity?"

"You must be very proud of yourself", Marcus responded bitterly. "You corrupted the woman who could've been the greatest hero of this decade."

"A hero can live up to her end of a bargain, no matter how much she resents her actions. You would do well to remember this." Death turned to face the two demons, who continued to stand over the fallen body of their recently appointed mistress. With a quick gesture, the small orb that was Suzume's soul rose from her body and floated over to his bony hand. He held it up in front of his skull for a few seconds and addressed it silently.

And Suzume was once again conscious, aware of the form that held her and capable of understanding his words, even though they could not be heard by mortal ears. **The wound was fatal. Your soul is mine.**

Her form flickered briefly in sadness and regret. He noticed this, and pondered briefly, and then continued. **You have assisted me greatly in the past twenty-four hours, and I must acknowledge the fact that my actions directly led to your demise. In light of this, I have decided that I will permit you to readopt your mortal form for any brief tasks that will aid you in bringing closure to your life.**

Her soul responded. _We had a pact. You were supposed to protect me, and I was supposed to help you kill Soma. Please, I don't want to break my word. Heaven only smiles on those who are honest._

**I cannot come to the conclusion that you have not upheld...**

_Please. I beg you. Give me another chance. Let me finish him._

Even given the unspoken nature of the conversation between the reaper and his harvest, the former was speechless. Even in death, she still wished to fulfill her duty. A duty that had not been explicitly stated, and that she had intentionally avoided assuming when they composed the terms of their pact. One that would gain her nothing at this point, except possibly the enmity of humanity. Purely for the sake of being true to her word.

He had always fulfilled his pacts with the same mentality, but that was because he was genuinely incapable of acting otherwise. This ethic was being expressed by a mortal...

His gaze moved from the soul to her former body, and the blade that she still held tightly in her hand.

**I will give you your chance.** He turned his attention to her soul again. **Soma has traveled far from here. It will be difficult for you to face him alone.**

_It doesn't matter. Gaibon can carry me._

**No. **He placed the soul into the form beneath him. **I will.**

* * *

"How dare you..."

"I haven't forgotten you, Suzume." The lady's expression was unflinching. "I know your face, and I recognize your aura."

The witch who had once called herself by the name of the fallen Belnades looked at the lady impassively. Who was she? And how had she tracked her to this location, so long after the fact?

"In your time in the church", she finally responded, "have you ever destroyed a zombie?"

"Yes", the lady replied almost immediately.

"Have you ever felt the pangs of guilt, knowing that you killed a human being? One who merely sought to walk the earth again, years after his demise?"

"No." The lady looked at her oddly. "Your description is inaccurate. Zombies are..."

"I know." The witch's eyes lit up. "Zombies are not the living. They do not exist to resume their old lives. They were brought back by dark magic for the sole purpose of serving those who revived them. They are undead monstrosities. They are not people.

"I returned under identical circumstances. I am not a person, either. The fallen Belnades is no more."

* * *

Soma had just decided to set course for the Asian continent when Death appeared in front of him.

If not for the altitude of the confrontation, it would have been very dramatic for anyone who happened to be watching. A twenty-foot demon, his eyes gleaming with intelligence, widening said eyes considerably at the giant cloaked skeleton that would have matched his height if he had possessed legs, facing him down from meters away with a large scythe in his bony hands, set against the light of the newly rising sun. Unfortunately, the scene looked like little more than two blurs from the ground.

Soma's eyes narrowed, and Death knew what the bearer of Dracula's power was doing immediately. _Leave me alone_, he was commanded. And Death, despite his intent, had no choice but to obey. He floated slowly to the side, releasing his scythe in the process. Satisfied, Soma resumed his forward progress toward the country where he had spent much of his life growing up.

Moments later, Suzume sliced him.

Suzume was understandably disoriented by the events, but she was trying her best to cope with them. She and Death had agreed that his moratorium on pretense did not apply to actions against his enemies, and this allowed Death to plan a rather deceptive assault. While he had the right to strike Soma, Soma could prevent him from making the effort, so it had been decided that Suzume would be doing the battling.

That was when she had discovered that she was no longer holding onto Death's scythe. He had taken the opportunity to relocate her to a more strategic location.

He had planted her soul in his weapon.

She _was_ Death's scythe, and he was holding her.

In the heat of battle, she was trying to figure out just what this meant for her. She levitated through the air effortlessly, adjusting her pitch and yaw to pursue the fleeing demon quickly and then making more dramatic rotations to drive her blade into his body. She hadn't had much time to practice, but she was not making a bad first effort.

At least until Soma seized her by the handle. She struggled, but she could not break his grip. He attempted to break her in two, but the scythe was as immortal as its owner and would not be broken. He tried to claim her soul, but the blade held all souls tightly until they were released by its rightful wielder. With few remaining options, he lifted her and used his heightened strength to throw her far into the distance. By the time she adjusted her trajectory and reduced her rotation, he had already disappeared from view, and she would not be able to match his air speed quickly enough to catch up.

Seconds later, Death appeared before her and grasped her by the shaft. Almost instantly, the two were floating in front of Soma again. This time, before Soma could repeat his command, Death lifted Suzume with one hand and threw her at the demon.

She caught him in the shoulder. Her blade, she realized, had been sharpened to near perfection, or perhaps perfection itself, and the fact that his shoulder was over three feet thick did not slow her rotation. Thinking fast, she pitched in such a manner that the next slice would travel through his body as well. As did the next one. She matched his speed, resulting in a constant spin that continued to slice through him as he attempted to dodge. The pain eventually grew too much for Soma to bear, and his wings stopped flapping, and he started to lose consciousness and altitude.

Seconds later, Death was there, catching the falling demon in one hand and Suzume in the other. He glanced at Soma briefly, then gave him a light toss back into the air and grasped Suzume with his other hand as well.

She understood quickly why he didn't leave this task solely to her. As his bony hands clenched her tightly, she could feel the supernatural power they held. In a few seconds of time, that power came to flow through her, filling her from shaft to edge. He truly was Death, she thought. And while she had tried to ignore such thoughts ever since she first met him, it had somehow become literally true since then. She was a tool of Death.

She wasn't complaining. In fact, she enjoyed every moment of it. The two were finally working together. Death wasn't merely supporting her; he was involved in her every action. His supernatural abilities kept her safe and allowed her to accomplish her task, and her efforts allowed him to act without fear of his limitations. Her blade shone, and she knew that she wanted to make him proud. One hand slid down her body to readjust his grip, and she knew that he understood her desire.

And then he swung.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as her blade passed through Soma's body. The flesh and blood of the demon rubbed against her sides, yet refused to leave a stain upon her perfect form. Bone and organs parted easily for her, granting her access to the depths where his soul resided.

Suzume became suddenly aware of another feeling within her. Hunger. She had not eaten in almost twenty-four hours, and yet this desire for nourishment stemmed from more than just that. She turned to face the soul and, with a great deal of satisfaction, started to devour it.

She was aware that the process was largely metaphorical, but she savored it on a physical level. Soma's soul, with the raw power of Dracula contained inside and the additional flavor of the power of dominance, slowly slid into her blade. She gulped it down slowly, relishing every portion of it. While she was unable to harness this power herself, it continued to fill her.

Then she was aware of the other souls. Thousands upon thousands of them, of every type and shape. The cardinal had indeed been busy that day. Innocent human victims, local wildlife, the demons that had once been fighting against her and her compatriots... and some of her compatriots themselves, clergymen who had been lost in battle... even Samuel, her attendant, about whom she had almost completely forgotten after Death had made his presence known.

She opened herself wider and allowed the other souls to flood in as well. She was in no position to sort or judge them; she merely collected them. The torrent of less powerful souls helped wash down the immense bulk of Soma's power, and soon they were all within her, filling her to the brim.

And her blade finished its trajectory, and early daylight shone upon her again, and time resumed.

As the remains of Soma's body turned into ash and drifted lightly toward the ground, Death lifted Suzume to an upright position and lightly stroked the side of her blade with a pair of bony fingers. **Well done**, he silently told her. To her senses, it felt just as if he was stroking her belly gently, immediately after she had finished eating a heavy meal. Despite the cold truth of his skeletal form, she found it to be a warm feeling.

Without another word, he grasped her pole with both hands again, holding it sideways, and somehow started to draw her into himself. Suzume shuddered at this new sensation. A wish she never knew she possessed had just come true. She was a part of Death. Death was a part of her.

And at that moment, she knew that she wanted to stay with him for the remainder of time.

* * *

The witch did not say any of these things to the lady. She would not truly understand them, and she had sworn to not reveal them anyway.

"You are not a zombie", the lady slowly responded. "You remember your life. You know what you did with it. You are exactly who you were when you were born."

"No." The witch was steadfast. "I am not the fallen Belnades. She was a priestess. I no longer do that. She helped people defend against the undead. I brought the undead to their doorstep."

She took a deep breath. "And if I was truly her, I would be fifty years old by now."

Indeed, the lady noticed, Suzume had aged less than a week since she had last seen her.

* * *

Suzume awoke to find that she was human again.

As she sat up, she noticed that she was on the staircase leading from the top of the tower. Death floated to the side, watching her.

She opened her mouth to question him, but he spoke first. "You would not have enjoyed it for long. Hundreds of thousands of lives die every day, and that is solely the human count."

Her next query went uninterrupted. "Why am I still here?"

"You have not yet concluded your mortal business."

"What? I fulfilled the pact! Isn't that what matters?"

The form of his skull naturally resembled a smile, but she imagined it to be genuine. "It is true. The villagers are safe from the vampires. My duty is no longer at risk. Soma is deceased, and I can once again focus my attention on the revival of Dracula."

He really knew how to ruin a feeling of accomplishment, she thought.

"Regardless of your opinion of my goals", he continued, "it remains true that you have done me, and indeed the world as a whole, a great service. I do not soon forget things like this." A brief pause as his voice turned more serious. "The pact is complete. Your soul is rightfully mine, and I must now request that you return my minions to me."

She slowly nodded. "They're yours."

"They remain in the tower." He paused in quiet contemplation. "They will miss you. Go to them."

She raised an eyebrow at him. After receiving no visual feedback, she shrugged and headed down the stairs into the tower.

At the bottom of the stairs, Slogra was standing at attention, while Gaibon attempted to remain in the same stance. She descended to their level as they watched, and then smiled at them. "This is it, I guess. You have to return to Death, and... so do I, I guess." Her eyes watered. "Thanks for everything."

Neither said anything. It would be strange if they did, she considered. Slogra hesitantly stepped forward and placed his hand on her shoulder. He stared her in the eyes in a sympathetic manner, and then he vanished. Gaibon was next, and he opted to spread his wings and return her hug from earlier. It was there for a second, and then he was gone as well.

Now alone in the tower, Suzume smiled sadly. She knew that this was going to happen, and she had appreciated the moment as much as possible, and now it was over. With a feeling of foreboding and reluctance, she reascended the steps and left the tower again.

Marcus was sitting on the stairs, waiting for her.

She stared at him in surprise. She had almost forgotten about him. The last time she had seen him, he had been forcibly restrained by Slogra and Gaibon as Death had spoken with her soul. In light of the recent deaths, it was apparent that he was no longer a vampire. Honestly, she was more surprised that he was still alive, after everything he had tried to do to Death.

And to her.

"Death left you a message", he said calmly. "Once the pact had been fulfilled, he was no longer obligated to remain completely honest with you."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"He has departed. Without you."

Her eyes widened. He had never actually said that he was taking her with him, had he? He had only said that her soul belonged to him. And now he was gone, as were his minions.

She gasped as she began to understand all the ramifications of what had happened. He was going to revive Dracula. He had promised. She had gone out of her way to fulfill her pact and allow him to do this. And now he had abandoned her, forcing her to stay among the humans that she had just betrayed. They would not be happy with her, and she would have to face them alone.

Even now, she was speaking with a man who had once been her closest ally, and even he had killed her in an effort to stop her...

She sat on the stairs bitterly. "You must hate me."

His gaze did not change. "I wish I could. It's easy to hate what you did, but..."

"I hate what I did, too!" She fought to hold back tears. "You were right! I never should've listened to him! I've doomed us all!"

"You said you'd do what you had to do."

"I shouldn't have had to do that. I ruined everything from the start. This could've all been avoided if I had just been stronger. Or smarter. Or less stubborn." She winced. "Or if I'd never been born."

Marcus shook his head. "I don't have the right to pass judgment on you." He stood up. "Let's go. We need to inform the church. We need to prepare for Dracula's return."

"No." She closed her eyes, and he could tell that she had started to cry silently. "You tell them. I'm not going back." She buried her face in her hands. "I've done enough damage."

* * *

"It was almost two decades ago when Dracula struck", the witch said balefully. "It was a small town, close to a thousand people. I was a wandering healer at the time, trying to do everything I could to redeem myself and rebuild my life. I had been passing through, and one of the restaurants allowed me to use their kitchen overnight to create some kind of... I can't even remember what I was making.

"In the middle of the night, the demons struck. The buildings were set ablaze. Blood was spilt through the town. I heard nothing but screams for a long time. And then the restaurant caught fire.

"The next thing I saw was some kind of demonic minotaur. Not even the regular kind. I think his axe blade was taller than me. He saw me, a number of demons followed him, and they surrounded me.

"And then he knelt down before me. So did the others. They stayed like that for a few seconds, and then they stood up and left.

"I was the only survivor of that attack. Everyone in that town died because of me. The demons only spared my life because I was one of them." She shook her head. "And I still am."

The lady looked at her sympathetically. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't bother." The witch stood up. "I stopped crying about that day fifteen years ago. I just got fed up with it. I hate being miserable." She walked over to some of the shelves. "It's better to just admit that I'm a monster and wait for judgment."

"Suzume..."

"It makes no sense, you know? Back in the days of the great Sypha, everyone thought she was some kind of demon. They'd have burned her at the stake and ended the bloodline if she hadn't fled. Now here I am today, the real thing, and everyone acts like I'm just another public servant."

"Stop that." The lady's voice grew stern. "You are not a demon. You are a Belnades."

"Fallen, if anything."

She held up the box. "Regardless of what you think you are, this package is still addressed to you."

The witch shrugged and took it from her. "What is it?"

The lady smiled. "Judgment."

The metaphor wasn't too far off, as Suzume discovered when she opened the box. Inside was a fairly large tome, although one that would fit easily on her bookshelves. The cover read _Dracula and the Belmonts: A Timeline_.

She scowled. "This isn't exactly something I'm interested in reading."

The lady did not lose her smile. "It's been updated to include Dracula's latest return. And the events leading up to it."

Suzume paled. "Just how much did you know before you came here?"

"Not nearly enough. I think Father Williams abridged your story."

"Wait. _Marcus_ wrote something?"

The lady shrugged. "He was our best source for the parts of the story that concerned you. In fact, he's the one who wanted you to receive this."

Without a word, Suzume paged directly to the last few chapters and read the part that pertained to her.

_Suzume Belnades (2036 - ?) - The elder of the two daughters of Yoko Belnades. Known practitioner of holy magic and healing; also trained in staff battling. In 2056, discovered a plot led by a corrupt religious official to kidnap Soma Cruz and use his power to create a clan of invincible vampires with intent to overrun the world. Defeated the official in combat; to properly prevent all consequences of his handiwork, was forced to kill Soma Cruz as well. Fearing that her actions would result in Dracula's rebirth, fled the church, never to return. Current whereabouts unknown._

Suzume blinked. "He left out a lot of stuff."

"History tends to be forgiving to heroes."

Suzume dropped the book on the table immediately. "I'm no hero."

"Marcus disagrees. Certainly, stopping that official counts."

"But innocent people died as a result of my..."

The lady put her hand up to Suzume's mouth. "Before you say anything more, he wants you to read the pages that he flagged."

Indeed, there were a few pages marked with small tabs. With a resigned sigh, Suzume flipped backward to the one closest to the end of the book. "Jonathan Morris and Charlotte Aulin. What about them?"

"It's a bit of a complicated story, from what I remember. A vampire managed to claim Dracula's power and sought the death of humanity. Jonathan and Charlotte fought and defeated him after saving some of the people that he had vampirized. Unfortunately, their actions allowed Dracula to return, so they had to defeat him as well."

Suzume raised an eyebrow. "They did, huh?" She continued to flip backward, as the lady briefly summarized each story.

A werewolf who defeated his bitter rival to save his sister, only to lose his transformation ability and inadvertently cause the rebirth of Dracula. A friend of the Belmonts sought to destroy Dracula for good by destroying his physical remains, only to find that he had resurrected him in the process. A devil forgemaster avenged the death of his girlfriend by defeating another forgemaster and servant of Dracula, only for Dracula to be reborn from his enemy's body.

The eldest known vampire-hunting Belmont had actually _created_ Dracula as a result of a lengthy scheme, but in the process stopped a vampire from victimizing the nearby population and avenged his wife's death.

"You are not the only one. Many have indirectly caused Dracula's rebirth while making a noble effort to save mankind", the lady said.

In the face of all this evidence, Suzume had to resign herself to one conclusion. "The others still tried to stop it from happening. I couldn't. I was cursed. If I had tried, Death had the option to stop me." She frowned. "I still failed."

"Maybe you did", the lady said. "That's why I succeeded for you."

Suzume looked at her again. She had come in with a dark injury, and it appeared to be the work of Dracula, but she hadn't actually considered that it might have been earned in direct combat. This woman truly could have been formidable twenty years ago...

Suzume remembered something. In a hesitant voice, she spoke. "...there was only one other priestess in training at the time."

The lady smiled sadly. "Mother is starting to feel ill. You should visit her. She wouldn't turn you away."

Suzume mentally cursed herself. She had been gone too long. She wasn't even able to tell that her debate opponent had been her own sister...

"...I can't", she protested. "No matter how much of a hero you think I am, I can't return. I betrayed the church. I have no right to enter its walls again."

"Don't think like that. Mother still loves you for who you are. Marcus has forgiven you. I just listened to your story, and _I _forgive you. And I know that God has forgiven you as well."

"Dracula is the greatest abomination to ever befall God", Suzume grumbled. "I wish I could believe I could be forgiven so easily."

"I know He has." The lady smiled and nodded knowingly. "If He hadn't, you wouldn't have been able to heal me." She turned and headed for the door. "My business here is concluded. If you change your mind, you know where your home is."

As the door closed behind her sister, Suzume considered her words. At this point, she wasn't sure what she believed anymore.

She was cursed. She knew this. The evidence followed her constantly. She felt odd premonitions of tragedy regularly. She had not had a sound night's sleep in thirty years. Stray undead creatures seemed to be attracted to her, much to the annoyance of everyone else. And her body completely refused to age.

And yet no one could bring themselves to believe that she was tainted by evil. Apparently to them, "witch" meant that she was a local authority on the occult, or that she could provide magical assistance for the right price, or even that the children found her "cool". No one ever seemed to care that her presence could doom them all.

As she thought about this, a small draft blew through the room. It wasn't particularly chilly, but it was enough to turn a few pages of the still-open book. Curious, she looked at the book again. Before her lay the end of the tale of Leon Belmont, a tale that had been summarized earlier.

_Leon stared at the floating form of the grim reaper as he began to dissipate. "I see. Give him this message. You have become a cursed being and I will never forgive you. This whip and my kinsmen will destroy you someday. From this day on, the Belmont Clan will hunt the night."_

She sighed. That passage had done nothing to help her feel better. How was a cursed being supposed to achieve forgiveness in such a world? Or was this just the opinion of the world over a thousand years ago?

The draft blew again, and the left-hand page lifted slightly. She placed her hand upon it to steady the page, and then noticed the passage written there. She opted to read the dialogue that had been spoken mere seconds earlier:

_Death stared at the Belmont in disbelief. "To think that I would be..."_

_Leon interrupted him. "I have the power to destroy all related to the vampires. Though you have divine powers, you are no exception."_

Her sister had noticed that she had retained her healing ability. Such talents were considered common among the Belnades family, of course, and she kept them even after this whole...

Realization struck her hard.

She had spent her life practicing divine talents to fulfill the role of the Belnades, a role for which she had been born. After accomplishing a number of tasks of this nature, she eventually came across a situation that she could not tolerate, yet was not equipped to solve. Rather than merely give up and leave, she sought help, and eventually found it in the form of a being who offered her a pact. She accepted it, even though she realized that it would require her to perform some actions that she wouldn't dare do otherwise. She spent the remainder of the time following his instructions, and her bitterness toward the situation eventually blossomed to a level of understanding, and by the end of her journey, she was starting to consider him a true friend and ally, and possibly vice versa, despite his detached nature and lack of true compassion toward her. In the end, her actions had caused the deaths of many people that she never wanted to hurt, and she worried that she would be considered evil, even though her main crime was refusing to abandon her pact...

It was an impressive coincidence, if it was one. With a few words changed, her life story practically became that of Death himself.

There was at least one significant difference, she considered. Death abandoned her. He refused to let her stay with him. He would not...

...would not force her to become his servant, like Dracula had done to him. Instead, he allowed her to continue her old life...

...a life where she did not suffer from aging, did not need to devote time to sleeping, had no reason to fear the undead, and often received what felt like messages from beyond...

...she watched everyone grow up and die around her, was no longer capable of dreaming, put nearby villagers at risk of attacks from the undead and was tormented by warnings of dire fate...

"Dammit, Death!" she yelled at the ceiling. "Is this supposed to be a curse or a blessing?"

Aware that she had done this, she sat down and tried to relax. Yes, Death could probably hear her. He observed all mortals, after all. Especially now, after his body had been destroyed by the actions of vampire hunters. But he would not respond. It was not part of his duty. He merely reaped the souls of the dead and watched over everyone.

He was probably watching over her, too.

She smiled at this. The church had often said the same thing about God. That was probably also true. But God's help had always been indirect. It meant much more to her when she could say that she was being watched over by a divine being and force of nature that had once allied with her, and aided her in battle, and saved her life, and personally thanked her.

It was an appealing theory, and she wondered if she should give it a chance. She could continue to live her life, whatever form it had taken. Make the most of it. Maybe even visit her mother, just to prove that she had not forgotten her. If things didn't turn out well, she could always leave again. If the church decided to burn her... well, she had been welcoming that fate for entirely too long. Perhaps it was the time to be optimistic again.

Her life wasn't necessarily a curse or a blessing. It was just... changed. Almost like what her life would have been like if she had lived more like Death. If that even made sense.

She would give this some hard thought later. Right now, it was time to prepare. There would be another customer at the door in three minutes.

Her new book remained on the table, open to the pages concerning Leon and Death. She had not yet noticed the folded piece of paper placed inside the pocket of the front cover. If she was lucky, she would find it later.

Inscribed was a quote written in Marcus's handwriting._ If all of humanity displayed such devotion and selflessness when fulfilling their promises, perhaps Dracula would have no place in this world._

It was attributed to a man named Gregor.

**An End**


	10. End 3: Trust

**Ending 3: Trust**

Suzume had hoped that this moment wouldn't come to pass.

It could have happened in so many other ways. Soma could have been killed before she got here. Marcus could have located Soma and saved him while she fought off the vampire hordes. If Death had realized the importance of her assistance, he could have even decided to show mercy at the critical time.

No such luck. The situation had worked out exactly as Death had anticipated when he had formed the pact with her in the first place. Sometimes she wondered if he had a foresight for these things. It could be argued, she decided.

The cardinal had been defeated, and it still hadn't been enough to prevent this outcome. Soma was still manacled to the wall, and Death was still moving in for the kill.

Marcus continued to protest as he attempted to stand up. "Suzume! I mean it! We have to stop him! If we don't, Dracula..."

And if I do, she thought, Death...

"I'm sorry, Marcus", she said, lowering her staff to her side. "I won't."

Soma stared at her with an inquisitive look in his eyes. Death noticed this and elaborated. "She formed a pact with me. I aided her in battling the vampires. She is now required to let me kill you."

Soma nodded slowly. "I see."

"It was the only way", Suzume added.

"You're making a terrible mistake!" Marcus was frantic. "If you don't stop him..."

Suzume stared straight ahead at Death, trying to silently convince herself that she was doing the right thing. She didn't abandon Soma and Marcus. She agreed with their opinion. Dracula should not return. But she had made a promise, and it would not do for her to risk Death's wrath.

Death raised his scythe over his head and floated toward Soma. He stared at the man for several seconds, and then spoke again in an annoyed voice. "I cannot do it."

She blinked. Several times. Was this some kind of miracle? Was the pact really a test, with this outcome as her reward for refusing to break it? She smiled. She would never throw away hope so easily again...

"Suzume." Death was addressing her. "The cardinal is resisting. You have not finished him. Do so."

She turned to face the cardinal. Indeed, there was visible evidence that he was recovering, even after she had destroyed his bizarre form. He was still able to exert some control over Death, it seemed. If she followed his instructions, there would be nothing keeping him from killing Soma.

But she had formed a pact. She promised to...

She turned to face her mentor. "Marcus, can you help me?"

With a quizzical expression on his face, he moved toward her. "With what?"

"I think I can purify the cardinal. I need you to purify Soma at the same time."

Marcus smiled. "Right!"

Death didn't smile. "What are you doing?" he asked angrily.

She shrugged in his direction. "Ending the vampiric threat. Just like I promised."

He shook his head. "You swore that we would eliminate the master of this castle."

"He looks like he might die soon. Either way, if he leaves the castle behind, won't that be enough?"

"What about Soma? You must..."

"I am not standing in your way. I promised I wouldn't. If you are going to kill him, do so." She paused, switching to a suspicious tone. "Or is the problem that you can't claim his soul if we purify him?"

He fumed. "You are testing my patience."

"Look!" She advanced on him. "I told you when we made the pact! I'm not going to kill him! When I agreed to not interfere, it was under the assumption that you had the right to kill him yourself! If you don't, then I'm sorry, but he has no reason to die!"

"My duty is to..."

"If you aren't allowed to kill him", she interrupted, "then that's not much of a duty, is it?" She shook her head. "I'm not your pawn. I don't give a damn what Dracula wants. He's not here, and I kinda hope he never comes back. Our pact has nothing to do with him. Marcus and I will stop the vampires, and the pact will be completed." She smiled at him. "I thought you'd be happy that I followed your orders and never strayed from the terms."

Death did not deign to respond to this. Behind her, Marcus spoke. "I'm ready."

"Okay", she said. "I'll start with the cardinal, and..."

"There is... no need."

As she watched, the cardinal struggled to his feet. "...thank you... Lady Belnades... thanks for standing up... for me... after everything I've done." He finally regained his balance. "I don't deserve it."

She grinned. "You know the church better than anyone. We teach forgiveness. Besides, Dracula's power..."

"I know... I claimed it selfishly... I wanted to avoid death." He glared at the reaper briefly, and then looked at her again. "I handled things poorly. So many died because of me." He sighed. "I know what I did wrong. I want to fix that."

Marcus looked at him. "It's good to hear that from you."

He stumbled toward Soma's position. "Soma... you shared your power with me. This power has been... a burden on you, I know... and knowing what I did with it... I was wrong." With a great deal of effort, he lifted his hand to Soma's shoulder. "Before I die... I want you to know... we should never have split your power..."

In a quick motion, the cardinal grasped Soma tightly and pushed him harder against the wall. "I should have claimed it all."

Suzume's face paled. Marcus's reaction was largely the same. Simultaneously, they dashed for the cardinal's position, Suzume pausing briefly to pick up Death's scythe along the way.

And then they were stopped, as Death grabbed the mentor and the student, one in each arm. He turned to look at the cardinal, who smiled at him.

"What are you doing?" Suzume hissed angrily.

Marcus looked up at his face, and then at Suzume. "He's being commanded. Great."

"There is only one explanation for my failure!" the cardinal ranted at Soma. "I don't possess the full power of Dracula at all! You kept some of it for yourself, you whelp!"

"Splitting the power was your idea..." Soma responded weakly.

"It doesn't matter! All that matters is that I rectify this!" Using his free hand, he began drawing some kind of energy from Soma's body. Suzume and Marcus tried to struggle, but they were held tight.

A minute later, Soma was unconscious, and the cardinal looked even more powerful than he had previously. Suzume could practically see the dark aura around him. He was starting to have all the makings of Dracula...

His voice was more bewildered and maniacal than sinister. "This is Dracula's true power? I can't believe how strong it is! If he had merely used his full potential in the past, no one would have sealed him away at all! Nothing could possibly resist this!"

He raised his arms, and before Suzume's eyes, everything in the room shifted. The colors in the room started to blur and bleed together. Death dropped his two captives and walked nonchalantly toward the cardinal. Marcus turned to Suzume and started making an arcane gesture in her direction.

"This... this is nothing less than the true power of dominance! It is mine! Everything is mine!"

Without any further buildup, the very color drained from the room and flowed into the cardinal's body. Marcus attempted to speak, but it was only a scream. His body collapsed to the floor as a white orb left his body and started to head toward the cardinal. Death continued to stand calmly as his own spirit left its temporary incarnation and headed in the same direction.

Suzume's soul was starting to fall victim to the same fate. She tried to resist, but the cardinal's power continued to pull at her soul. The slow separation caused her great pain, and she closed her eyes and screamed as her body collapsed to the floor...

* * *

"After speaking such words to me, you may not truly deserve my assistance."

Suzume opened her eyes slowly. She was in the same room as before, and it was still colorless. She lifted her head to find that Marcus was unconscious on the floor, Death was still facing the cardinal, and the cardinal was still casting his dark magic. All around the room, she could see other small orbs floating in midair. They must also be souls, she thought.

Grumbling to herself, she started to lift herself to her feet.

"I would not do that. It will be more convenient if you remain still."

That was Death's voice, she realized. But he had not moved. Where was he? She had seen his soul abandon his body, which meant that he was...

Come to think of it, nothing had moved since she had woken up. She remembered what that meant.

"I suspect that I should have never promised to abandon pretense. If I had not, perhaps you would have developed a healthy sense of skepticism by now."

"So what, did you stop time just to taunt me?" she growled.

"I thought that his dishonesty was obvious. He captured Soma long before he ever possessed the power of Dracula. If you had not been so hasty to believe him, this could have been avoided."

She hesitated. "What happened, anyway?"

"He is using the power of dominance in its most concentrated form. In short, he is claiming the souls of everything, living or dead, in a spherical radius. As he continues to gain power from these souls, the radius will expand. Even considering that the rate of growth of its radius will slow as the volume increases at a constant, it will not be long before he is the only living creature remaining on the planet."

She remained quiet for several moments. "I guess it's obvious that you don't like this."

"It is too late for me to oppose him. You should have stopped him before he..."

"Okay!" she shouted. "I get it! I'm too damn gullible! I admit it! There's a reason why I kept getting captured by vampires! If we're doomed, just drop the subject and let me die already!"

"**I will not.**"

She shuddered at his delivery. "Excuse me?"

"My soul will be claimed shortly. I estimate that it will occur less than two seconds after the flow of time resumes. I believe that this is sufficient reason to not allow time to resume until I am convinced that you are capable of solving this crisis."

"Me?" she asked incredulously. "What the hell can I do?"

"We have already discussed this. Do not give up so easily. No one in your bloodline ever..."

"You know, I think they might have considered it if they saw Dracula instantly claim every soul in existence!"

"**Listen to me.**" Death's voice was once again trying to be patient. "There are a few facts that the cardinal does not know. First, there is a very good reason why Dracula has never..."

He stopped. After a few seconds of silence, Suzume grew impatient. "Why he's never what?"

"This is becoming needlessly difficult", he answered simply. "I must ask. I have placed a large amount of trust and many of my resources in the knowledge that you can succeed. I notice that Marcus has done the same thing. Even as his soul was claimed, he was making a deliberate effort to aid you." His voice grew tense. "Is there a reason why you are the only one here to possess no faith in your own talents?"

She paused to think about this. Death had to have a point. He wouldn't have brought it up if he didn't. Unfortunately, she had a very strong counterpoint.

"I did. When I came to this castle, I was ready to take on the world. I knew what I had to do, and I was sure that I was going to do it." Her voice quickly dropped in tone. "Five minutes later, I was dead."

He spoke immediately. "You were not adequately prepared."

"I know! You told me that! You helped me, and I accepted your advice! And I improved! I saw that I improved! And then I died again anyway!"

"They were trapping you..."

"That's not the point!" she shouted. "Look at what I've done since then! Yes, I know I've become stronger! Yes, I know those vampires are all dead, and I can take them down myself! But that has nothing to do with me!

"I have no innate specialty in magic. Anything I can cast, I learned from Marcus. This staff has been great for killing vampires, but he brought it, not me. My staff techniques? Everything I taught myself, I had to unlearn. Anything I know now, I got from Slogra. Any kind of strategy I used to reach the cardinal, you came up with it. I don't know the layout of this part of the castle. Gaibon did, and he carried me directly. I wouldn't even have my own soul at this point if not for you!

"I am nothing more than the sum of everyone else's help. I can't think of anything I've done right that I chose to do myself. Especially not my idea of trying to save the cardinal." She was dejected now. "If I believed that I could succeed, it was because everyone else was succeeding along with me. And now they have all failed..."

Death remained unconvinced. "Do you know why I have continued to help you?"

"Bringing me was Marcus's idea. You told me that."

"I was past the point of believing anything that he said on its own merits." He paused briefly. "If his student had been anything but a Belnades..."

"Again with the stupid Belnades!" she snapped. "It's just a family name and a talent for magic!"

"That is **not** true. You are..."

After waiting another few seconds, Suzume started getting fed up with his tendency to cut himself off. "Look, if you have something you want to tell me..."

**No. Do not do that.**

Suzume stopped immediately. Seconds later, she realized that he had sounded different from usual. Even past his usual supernatural voice. Almost as if...

**I must insist. If you order me to...**

...he wasn't talking to her, was he? Someone was giving him orders, and she didn't know who. The cardinal? Someone else? Whoever it was, he was against the idea.

"Excuse me? What is going on?"

There was no reply.

"Hello?"

Still nothing. Suzume began to worry.

"Um... I'm sorry? I should have more faith in myself? I shouldn't be so easily tricked? Is that what you want me to say?"

There was still no response.

"You know, if you're not going to talk to me, you could start time again or something. I don't exactly want to be stuck here... all alone... forever..."

Death finally spoke again. "I want to help you. You should be aware of that."

She breathed suddenly at his voice. "I'm not refusing your help. Really. But I don't know what I can..."

"I want to help you. Yet I am required to help you, and I am forbidden from helping you, at the same time." His voice had become surprisingly weak and frightened. His last words were a whisper. "I must give up."

"Excuse me?" Suzume protested. "You're the one trying to tell me to never give up! This isn't exactly helping!"

"A mortal who gives up will not act. I **cannot** act."

"Really? Who says? What's the problem?

He was not responding again. Suzume started to get fed up with the situation. Without a second thought, she stood up. "I'm not going to lie around and let you suffer. If you want my help so much, then _let me help you!_"

Death remained silent.

Shaking her head, she made her way through the motionless monochrome vista of the cardinal's rampage until she was standing next to the floating body of her ally. She considered tapping on it a few times. "I thought you trusted me. You could continue to do so, you know." Pausing as she remembered the events that had been going on in the room, she walked past the body and tried to address the soul that had traveled from its body instead. "Or is there a pact that says that I can't help you?"

Nothing.

"Look! I'll even make it easy for you! I vow that if you tell me what's going on and allow me to help you, I will never again repeat anything I have learned to any living being in existence! Isn't that what you wanted last time?"

Even with this proclamation, she could not get a reply out of him.

"Fine! Ignore me! Is there anyone else who..."

_**This is not the first time that you have made such a vow.**_

She looked up. "Who said that?"

_**He took a very significant risk. He did not even request any conditions.**_

The voice sounded like it was coming from Death... but the intonation was different. Suzume opted to respond. "That's right."

_**It is bizarre that he would place such faith in a mortal. Not even the bearer of the crimson stone came by this knowledge. Mortal, are you aware of the severity of his actions?**_

She thought for a moment. How could she be? She didn't even know who she was talking to. Unless...

She swallowed hard. "I knew it was confidential. I didn't think it would get me into any trouble if I didn't repeat it."

_**Do you truly feel that you, as a being of limited existence, have any right to possess this knowledge?**_

She decided to be completely honest. "I suppose I shouldn't. But I know what he told me last time, and I see the effects of what is currently happening. I'd say that he thinks someone _needs_ to know this stuff, and he chose me. And I swear to God that I will not betray his trust."

There was a lengthy pause. _**You have put your undying faith in "God". **_She could almost hear the quotation marks. _**Would you put your undying faith in "Death"?**_

This might be a test, Suzume thought. An honest answer could fail it. So could a lie. In the end, when talking to people like this, she decided, stick to the truth and be polite about it.

"I wouldn't", she admitted. "He formed a pact with Dracula. That alone makes me wary of him, let alone everything else." She took a deep breath. "But that comes from a pact with my enemy. He also has a pact with me. When he speaks to me, I believe him. When he desires to help me, I know that he won't betray me. He is known for bringing death, yet when he offers me life, I gladly accept it." She looked at his motionless body again. "I have seen what he can do. When he puts his trust in me, it is among the greatest gifts I could ever receive. And I refuse to turn away his trust so easily."

The voice did not pause after the end of her speech. _**There will be a condition. If you speak anything of this to a living being, you will be subject to a penalty of greater magnitude than your mortal existence. Do you accept this?**_

"I must." She gestured behind her. "The alternative is no mortal existence at all."

_**You will be held to this**_, she heard, and then she heard more. Much more. Practically a cavalcade of information, and it quickly became too much for her to handle. She tried her hardest to ignore it, but...

**She is merely a mortal. She should be limited to what is relevant to her, and it should be presented in an accessible manner.**

That was Death, she realized with a gasp of relief. "Are you feeling better?"

**Not yet. **A brief pause. **I am concerned that your actions may not have been fully warranted.**

"I know, but you weren't letting me help on my own. And I promised."

**Even if you do not speak of this, you may be tempted to act upon it.**

She frowned. "You don't trust me?"

**I do not know if I will continue to trust you once the pact is fulfilled.**

And now, before her eyes, she could see the translucent afterimage of a short list of blocks of text, each containing a number of words in English and lengthy series of letters and long numbers of at least twenty digits that made very little sense to her.

Death handled it immediately. **Replace the M value ending in 308 with "Suzume Belnades", 712 with "Cardinal", 112 with "Gaibon", and 113 with "Slogra". The O value should be replaced with "the crimson stone".**

Suzume blinked. "What is this, a computer program?"

**I felt that it would be a suitable metaphor.**

"I have rarely used a computer", she said, shrugging. "So the large numbers are..."

**They are a quick way to identify individuals. Consider how many souls fall under my jurisdiction.**

"We're not that far past nine billion..."

**I am not limited to human souls or the souls of living creatures.**

The list returned, and Suzume found herself able to understand it this time.

_(O) Claim the souls of:_

_(abridged)_

_- Soma Cruz (bypassed via subsequent event)_

_- Cardinal_

_(abridged)_

_(P) Obey all commands given by the bearer of the crimson stone_

_+ Actively pursue and ensure the well-being of the bearer of the crimson stone_

_(P) Aid Suzume Belnades (bypass level 0) in eliminating Cardinal and all vampires that share his power_

_- Command Gaibon and Slogra to uphold above (bypassed via subsequent event)_

_+ Protect Suzume Belnades from harm_

_- Command Gaibon and Slogra to uphold above (bypassed via subsequent event)_

_+ Refrain from dishonesty_

_/ When pact is fulfilled, ownership of Suzume Belnades transfers to soulbearer_

_(I) Transfer self to possession of Cardinal_

_(O) Instruct Suzume Belnades about power of dominance_

_(O) Pending_

_(O) Pending_

"This is..." Suzume sputtered. "...this is... your _entire list of pacts_?"

**No. There remain millions of soul demands, most of which are about to be bypassed, as well as pacts with many mortals that are irrelevant to our mission and therefore do not need to come to your attention.**

"I think I see why you were hesitant."

**Anyone with access to this list is likely to be able to predict **_**my every action**_**. Mortals should not know such things.**

"Okay. So what's the problem? Why do I need to see this?"

**Look at the list. Carefully. Can you ponder any possible sequence of events of finite probability such that **_**every single term on the list is fulfilled?**_

"I don't know." She studied the list for a moment. "When it says 'pursue and ensure the well-being', does that mean you break the pact if he dies?"

**No. It breaks the pact if I am directly responsible for his death, or fail to act to his benefit where an opportunity exists.**

"And that would be referring to Dracula?"

**It also refers to the cardinal. He shares the power of Dracula.**

She turned her head to look at the stationary figure of the cardinal as he beckoned the souls to join him. "Are you sure?"

**Uncertainty is insufficient reason to risk breaking a pact.**

"What if I point out that he does not have the crimson stone?"

A short pause. **He still has...**

"It doesn't matter, does it? You swore to obey the guy with the crimson stone. The cardinal does not actually have the crimson stone. So you don't have to obey him. Period. Whether he resembles Dracula or not. Does that make it simpler for you?"

This time, there was a much longer pause. **I may have grown too accustomed to obeying Dracula. I should not have needed someone to point that out to me.** His voice brightened. **That will aid greatly. It will not, however, free me from owing him my soul.**

She winced. "Yeah, you have to give him your soul and you have to take his soul. That doesn't quite work, does it? You can't combine souls or anything?"

**Not in a manner that would satisfy the pacts.**

"By the way, what are the 'pendings'?"

**I expect that there will be more instructions on the way once this set has been figured out. I sincerely hope that they will not confuse the issues further.**

She raised an eyebrow. "Who's giving the orders, then?"

**That is not for you to know, even now.**

"I talked to someone earlier. He acted like he was your superior."

**I admit to having superiors.**

"Really? More than one?"

**When I inform you that you are not to know, I expect you to abandon the subject.**

She sighed at this. "Uh... back on track, then. Um... maybe there's a roundabout way of handling this?"

**Elaborate.**

"Well, remember when you didn't kill Marcus, assuming that you would handle him later? And then I suggested that curing him of vampirism also counted? You could fulfill the term without killing him on sight that way, as long as it gets done somehow?"

**I will want some kind of assurance that the term can be completed. If I have a chance to take action and do not, and then I never fulfill the term, that would be a direct failure on my part.** One item on the list blinked on cue. **I also remind you that I cannot be dishonest.**

Inspiration struck Suzume. "Can you make more terms if asked?"

**It may only make the web more convoluted.**

"Trust me on this. It might just work."

**I will not agree to a term until it is justified.**

Suzume took a deep breath. This might take some convincing. "Do you believe that I will be capable of striking the cardinal in battle?"

Death's voice was surprised. **Less than ten minutes ago, you were thinking about giving up.**

"Things change, especially once terms get added. Like the one about the power of dominance? You were about to explain what that means, right?"

**It will wait until after we finish the immediate task. Do you believe that you can succeed?**

"If you give me this term, definitely. Um... that is, if you even can. You mentioned two seconds."

**Correct. I cannot physically change anything while time is stopped, and he will claim my soul two seconds after time resumes. **Another term flickered. **That term will remain in effect.**

She pondered the best way to ask the question. "How long did it take you to give me Gaibon and Slogra?"

**That term was handled via direct will. I do not believe that it requires any amount of time.**

"And you've gotten more terms since everything froze, so we can definitely try to add it now. Okay, I'll just ask. Is it possible for you to grant me the right to use your scythe?"

**You already carry it.**

"I mean, uh, for claiming souls? For myself?"

Death went silent. She briefly wondered what his reaction would have looked like if he was in his body, and then remembered that he didn't possess facial expressions at that time, either. **Explain yourself.**

"I was thinking... you could give your soul to the cardinal, and that will be fulfilled. And then I could use the scythe in some way that would allow me to claim your soul, and then you wouldn't have any more terms that required you to help the cardinal or anything, so we could finish him off and take his soul. Will that work?"

Death's voice was hesitant. **It is rare that I say this. You scare me.**

"It's not like you never allowed Dracula to take your soul..." she grumbled to herself.

**This may qualify as dishonest.**

"No! It won't! Because you will give him your soul with full intent of doing so! You don't have to betray him or anything! Just finish your pact with intent to obey him, and I'll live with it, because you've made it clear enough that the fact that you obey your orders to the letter is the main reason why you're even allowed to run around with your abilities in the first place! It's not your fault if I manage to steal your soul from him, right?"

**You intend to defeat him without my help. After your rant earlier...**

"No. Not without your help. You are going to make a pact with me that allows me to use your scythe to claim souls, and you are going to _finally_ explain this whole power of dominance thing to me, and you're going to do this before time resumes, right? So you obey my pact, then obey his, then obey mine later, and Dracula's orders don't actually apply here at the moment, and everything works out okay."

There was a lengthy pause. Long enough for Suzume to consider that she might be pushing the limits of his trust a little too hard. She wouldn't necessarily agree to this if he was asking her, would she?

**...under the terms of this pact, the entity known as Suzume Belnades will be granted the right to wield the physical manifestation of the scythe of Death as a weapon, with the added benefit of being able to claim souls with its use. In the event that the soul of Death is claimed using this scythe, it will return to his rightful possession and his soul will be freed. This pact will be in effect until Death claims otherwise, and at that point, all souls in the custody of Suzume that have been claimed using the scythe will become the property of Death. **A brief pause. **With the possible exception of Suzume herself, in the odd case that she is somehow claimed by the scythe.**

"...that sounds about right."

**I hope that this does not backfire, **Death said.

There was a quiet pause for a few moments. The list vanished from view, and then Death spoke again, this time without nearly as much supernatural inflection. "I thank you for your assistance. I do not believe that I have made a mistake in trusting you."

Suzume nodded. "While we're on that subject, can you please explain why my being a Belnades is so important?"

"You were a vampire for a brief amount of time, correct?"

"Yeah", she said. "I barely got out of that one untouched. I kinda had to bluff my way out."

"You are aware that the cardinal possessed mastery of the vampires that he could exercise at his whim, and even Marcus was controlled at various times?"

She nodded. "There was a voice telling me to obey the cardinal. Not very convincing, though. I don't know why they bothered."

"Every other vampire in that room was a slave to that voice", Death stated calmly. "You say that you merely shrugged it off as an annoyance."

She stared at his motionless body, then corrected herself and stared at his soul. "Are you kidding me? You mean people were actually controlled by that?"

"You have a natural resistance to the power of dominance, and it seems that you honestly did not know about it. This is often the case when the talent is present from birth, rather than learned." He paused for emphasis. "In summary, the cardinal cannot sway you. He could not control your actions then, and he cannot claim your soul now, as long as you resist it. And you can do this because you are a Belnades."

"...they never said... how could I have possibly known?" Suzume asked hesitantly.

"If I had to propose a theory", Death said in an uncertain voice, "I would suggest that no one in your church expected Dracula to return again." A brief pause. "Soma must be proud to have so much faith placed in him."

Before Suzume could respond, he changed the subject. "We should prepare for the plan. Be careful with my scythe. You know what it is capable of doing." A quick pause as he noticed something important. "You are not in position. Prepare to follow my instructions. I will not be able to move you this time, so pay close attention." A sigh. "I had hoped that you would not stand up."

* * *

The preparations took a good eight minutes. As Suzume's position finally met Death's standards, he spoke one last time. "There are four things that I would like you to know before we resume."

"Oh?" Suzume responded.

"First, I heard what you said earlier, and I want to assure you that I have a great deal of faith in you and your ability to succeed. Do not give up; you will not succeed if you do. Second, claiming souls from someone with the power of dominance is considerably harder than you think. It is useless to strike if you cannot see the souls."

"It would've been nice to know that earlier", she grumbled.

"Third, I have received the pending orders. They do not affect the plan significantly, but I want you to know that they will come into effect if the plan works, and that you will be pleasantly surprised." He considered his instructions briefly to himself. It was what he would have called a "bypass level 2" if she had seen it earlier. Those orders were not common, but he had to agree that this was sufficient cause...

"Uh, fourth?"

"Your eyes were closed, and you were screaming."

Understanding quickly, she shut her eyes and let loose to her lungs' capacity. Eventually she gasped for air and opened her eyes.

The room was the same as before, except that there were no souls visible now. She noticed that the room still appeared to be monochrome. The bodies of Death and Marcus lay unconscious on the floor, and Soma hung limply from his chains behind the cardinal.

"I see", her aforementioned enemy noted. "That would explain Dracula's failure. The clans that were chosen to stop him must be immune to his power. I underestimated you."

She had underestimated herself as well, she thought. "So it seems."

"It doesn't matter. You have not yet reached the level of the legendary heroes. Compared to Dracula, you are nothing. You cannot hope to stop me."

"Everyone else thinks I can."

The cardinal smiled maliciously. "Everyone else? Everyone else is a part of me now. Your friends, your enemies, your holy mentor, your supernatural ally, that Dracula wannabe..."

"Give them back!" Suzume shouted.

"If you won't join them, I'll let them destroy you!"

Death had been correct, as she quickly found out. The scythe wasn't proving effective at claiming his soul, let alone any of the souls that he had stolen. They really were a part of him, she decided. He was certainly acting like it, pressuring her with a wide variety of skills that she had seen various demons use earlier that day.

And holy magic. And a few sickles.

Mentally cursing the cardinal, she put the scythe away and pulled out her staff. If Death had to be convinced that this man wasn't Dracula, then there was no reason why the staff wouldn't be effective. Even if things weren't going to plan, she would not let up. No one would forgive her if she did.

"I refuse to lose!" the cardinal yelled as he sent a series of electric charges at her. "Not this time! The power of dominance belongs to no one but me! I have the right!"

Suzume leapt out of the way quickly. As she regained her footing, she noticed something unusual. The staff had left a trail of magic behind her as she moved. As she watched, some of the charges aimed at her former location collided with the trail and dissipated. This was new. She'd never gotten the staff to do that before. She'd have to ask Marcus about it later if she survived.

...Marcus. He had been casting something, hadn't he? Death made sure that she knew that, which was odd, because he had not been giving much credit to her mentor at all...

The fight. Right. Thinking fast, she spun the staff in front of her and watched as the resulting afterglow stopped the fireballs that had been flying at her. "Your right is nothing more than greed for power", she retorted. "It isn't often that the church and Dracula agree."

To punctuate this, she swung her staff at the next set of fireballs. As the staff destroyed them on contact, she noticed that it was charging holy power in its tip. With no other immediate options coming to mind, she attempted to focus a blast of holy power through her weapon.

The results were remarkable. A massive beam of light shot forth from the staff and struck the cardinal directly in the right arm. He screamed in agony as the spell he had been charging in his other hand fizzled to nothingness. Once the beam was ended, she could see that she had burned away a large portion of his arm's flesh, revealing bone underneath.

He stared at her in shock. "How the hell did you..."

Good question, she thought. Also, why the hell couldn't she have done that before? Exactly how much energy had Marcus put into this thing? Was he holding back earlier, or was this the power of the Belnades clan, or had he sacrificed himself?

At this point, she decided, it didn't yet matter. She was in a battle, and she was quickly taking control of it. Despite his attempts to attack her, nothing the cardinal could do would compare to the severe injury the staff was causing him. Less than two minutes later, it looked as though his body was coming apart, promising an end to the catastrophe that surrounded them... or perhaps granting access to his soul.

"What have you done?" he screamed. "I can't control..."

He was silenced forever as the souls poured out of his body. But, she noticed, they weren't the souls she had seen earlier. These had adopted their physical forms. A multitude of humans and animals and plants and demons, all bound together in a single body, spread forth from the cardinal's remains. Grotesque, she thought. If Death was believed, there would have to be millions of them.

She realized this just in time to notice that they had filled the entire room and were starting to crush her against the wall. She screamed in pain and attempted to strike them away, but they were not responding to the staff at all. Finally the amorphous combination grew too dense for the structure, and the tower's walls gave way, and Suzume found herself falling to the ramparts below. Again.

...but this time, she suddenly determined, the cardinal had claimed everyone's souls, and she had ensured that Death was one of them, which meant that _there was no one to catch her..._

* * *

When Suzume regained consciousness, she immediately wished she hadn't. Her entire body was screaming out in pain. The fall must have been more than a hundred feet.

Above her, it appeared as though the entire central structure of the tower had been replaced by that... thing. If she had to describe it, she would liken it to the "legion" that many Belmonts had spoken of battling. Except, rather than consisting of human bodies, it consisted of... everything living, and many things that had already died.

And each would correspond to a soul, she realized. It was time for her to use her scythe. All she had to do was cut this thing apart and claim the souls and the battle would be over. Naturally, the sooner she found Death among that mess, the better.

She started to turn to reach for her scythe... and discovered that she couldn't. She couldn't turn. She couldn't lift her arms. She couldn't even move her head. In horror, she surmised that the fall had paralyzed her body.

Was she dead? No, she concluded. Dead things wouldn't be in this much pain.

This was quickly followed by a second conclusion. She was in this much pain and couldn't move. Death was a captive of the abomination above her. She probably _should_ be dead.

And third, while she was drawing quick conclusions, there was no one around to help her. By definition. Every soul in the area had been claimed, except for hers, and she was incapable of action. She couldn't move, she couldn't fight, and she couldn't even cast a spell without moving her body. The battle was over, and she had lost, and she had no more tricks up her sleeves. She stared at the sky in defeat, lacking the ability to do anything else.

Minutes passed. The blobby thing continued to expand. She would probably be engulfed in it in about an hour or two at this rate. And that's when she saw it.

There was a faint amount of motion in the air, flying toward the creature. She couldn't make out its form at this distance, but it appeared to be something with flapping wings, with a body dangling below it, with a long thin shadow extruding from it.

It couldn't be. How could Gaibon and Slogra possibly have...?

_T__hey, being bound to me, can somehow be subjected to the same limitations as myself..._

_In summary, the cardinal cannot sway you. He could not control your actions then, and he cannot claim your soul now..._

_This is why I am binding them to you..._

She immediately tried to see if she could turn her attention to them, and found that she could. A glimmer of hope remained. She instructed Gaibon to head to her position immediately. It took him just long enough to quickly scan the landscape to locate her, and then the distant shadow slowly grew to become the familiar red gargoyle and dinosaur knight. Gaibon released Slogra gently on the ramparts near her, and then came to his own landing. Slogra looked at Suzume, and then immediately turned toward Gaibon as if to confer with him.

Okay. She had two remaining allies. Now what? She thought about the bizarre creature again. Certainly, someone would have to be able to fly to reach it. Gaibon would help there. She would not be any use in this situation if she couldn't move, so he had no reason to carry her unless she sought to flee the premises. Slogra... he was trained in weaponry. She wondered if he would also have permission to wield the scythe to claim souls, either because he was bound to someone who formed that pact, or because he was one of Death's subordinates...

Before she could finish her thoughts, Gaibon lifted her body off the ground. She was in no position to resist, nor did she have much of a reason to do so. As she stared ahead, she noticed that Slogra had grabbed her by the wrist. In confusion, she watched as he started moving it around in various directions, almost as if he was trying to get her to conduct an orchestra.

If she could roll her eyes, she would. What was he trying to...?

...a clockwise circle, counterclockwise from his perspective, adding a five-pointed star in the middle, and then moving her hand through the middle of it.

She knew that motion. Marcus had taught it to her. He had almost lost his life as a result, as passing on his knowledge meant that he was no longer the sole healer available...

She had cast it after a battle in which she had been severely injured, and Death had noticed this. That was when he explained exactly why he had kept Marcus alive that long...

And Slogra had been there at the time, and he had seen her cast it, and seen its results. Somehow, despite only seeing it once, he had memorized the motion...

She turned her attention to him and instructed him to press her hand against her chest and keep it there during his next time through the motion. As he started again, she focused her magical energy, drawn from her soul as opposed to her body, into the hand that was making the motions despite not being under her control. And once her hand had traveled through the pattern, she released the energy.

The warmth flowed through her, and she felt her bones become unshattered, and the pain that covered her entire body became less severe, finally disappearing entirely. By the time the spell was complete, she realized that she had been completely healed and could physically move her body again.

Marcus had cast the spell in tandem with her before, because his power wasn't enough to save her. They had never considered that perhaps her power alone was enough...

As Gaibon set her down gently, the implications of what had just happened struck her. Death and Marcus were not present or capable of helping her. Yet they had helped her, just now, by lending her some of their strongest skills back before she had even confronted the cardinal for the first time. And because they had done so, she was now able to fight again, and the world would not have to give up hope.

They had trusted her from the beginning. Both of them. At the same time. Despite the fact that their goals were directly opposed. She couldn't imagine what would have happened if one of them had convinced her to abandon the other...

"Okay", she said, speaking for the first time in a while. "I know what we have to do. We need to find Death's soul and free it. Gaibon, I need you to carry me. Slogra, you stay here as backup. If this doesn't work, I'll want you to take over for me."

She looked at her scythe briefly, and then turned toward Gaibon, who had already bent down for her to climb on his back. Probably the best way, she thought. She didn't want to hit him accidentally.

There was a tap on her shoulder. She turned to find Slogra holding a small object in her direction. Raising an eyebrow in curiosity, she took it from him. Upon close inspection, it appeared to be a blood-covered coin bearing the likeness of a skull on it. She knew that coin. It was very probable that they were standing near where Gaibon had last fallen.

Smiling, she pocketed it quickly and looked at Slogra again. "Thank you for everything." He nodded in a dutiful manner.

Half a minute later, she was on Gaibon's back, and he was heading upward toward their destiny.

* * *

Gaibon circled the beast lazily while Suzume kept her eyes focused.

Marcus's staff, she realized, was not very useful against souls. Not even at this level of power. This truly was the time to use the scythe. Unfortunately, that would require them to get closer.

Gaibon understood this order and closed in.

Chaos broke loose a short time later. The thing was feeling threatened. Much like the cardinal before it, it harnessed its souls to fend off the invaders. Suzume wound up using the staff after all, trying to shield herself and Gaibon from attack. Meanwhile, she held the scythe tightly in the other hand, just in case.

Huh, she thought. Staff in one hand, scythe in the other. She was actually doing it. Granted, the cardinal was right when he said that it wouldn't work well for her in battle.

This dangerous strategy paid off better than she had imagined. She noticed as soon as a sickle came flying in their direction. Gaibon dodged it easily, but her order followed immediately afterward: follow it to its source.

The approach was heavily guarded. Various arrows flew at them, as did fireballs and minor spells. Gaibon was skilled at quick aerial maneuvers and wasn't being harmed much, but...

There. The hooded skull, a small distance below their position, straight ahead. Gaibon prepared to dive... and suddenly pulled upward.

"What are you doing?" Suzume asked as she tried to see their previous destination. Then she saw it. A small plant, resting a few feet above Death's position. She had read about them in books. Mandragora. Very deadly if approached, due to its screams.

"...I see it now", she confirmed. "How can we get close enough to strike Death..."

And suddenly she wasn't sitting on anything anymore. She quickly reached an apex, and then started falling near the side of the chimeric monstrosity. Below her, Gaibon had gone into a dive directly at the plant.

And then he reached it and forced its body into his jaws. She knew the scream would come soon, and she knew that he was...

...no, don't, she thought. Even worse, she continued to think, she was quickly approaching his position, and Death was just below him, and his body was partly in the way...

This was too important. There would be time to curse his sacrificial tendencies later. She drew the scythe as she fell and drove it into the flesh of the amalgam with an overhead swing.

The scythe began to warm in her hands, and she could tell that it was doing its task, claiming the souls of whatever it sliced through. A number of innocent people, a skeleton, what appeared to be a wildcat of some kind, the mandragora, Gaibon... she cursed silently to herself... and then Death below him, and more people, a nest of giant insects, a bird...

She wasn't falling anymore. **Well done**, she heard, and she remembered the coin, and remembered that Death had phrased the pact to release him once he had been claimed. **I will now fulfill my promise to assist you. Locate the head near the top of the demon.**

This was not as difficult as she had thought. She was lifted upward to the top of her adversary, and carried around its body until she saw what she thought he was talking about. Given everything that she had witnessed, she didn't even bother to ask how she was being carried.

**Aim for it and swing**, he said. And she did.

And as she swung, the scythe's blade changed. The sharp thin metal elongated to a ridiculous length and followed the swing's trajectory like a tetherball, wrapping its blade around the demon as it followed its circumference. Finally, it looked as though the blade had passed the bottom of the creature.

She twisted the blade, and it tightened around the creature. What could have been at least a mile of sheer blade closed around it, slicing into every individual soul and claiming it as the blade molded itself into a cylinder at the center of where the tower once stood. And then the cylinder shortened and reshaped itself into a regular scythe blade again.

**Excellent work.**

Suzume stared at the weapon, amazed at what it had done. It had stopped the raging monstrosity in one easy hit, and effectively claimed at least millions of souls in under a minute. "What was that?" she asked.

**The scythe is a metaphor**, Death's voice reminded her. **There is little practical reason to claim souls one at a time.**

"Yeah, but... I did that?"

**My pending order is to aid you in any way possible, within the scope of my abilities, in the claiming of the soul of the cardinal and any souls that he had claimed, at a bypass level of 2.**

"By..."

**Do not repeat my orders out loud. You swore. **A short pause. **The term is not literally accurate, but it is helpful for your understanding. I was authorized to use the full extent of my abilities, whether or not they were otherwise permitted, as long as I continued to fulfill all of my relevant pacts.**

**There was some consideration of a higher level approach, in which I ignore all pacts completely and merely execute the order. **There was some hesitation in his voice. **I will not go into detail, but it would have resulted in the temporary annihilation of all life on the planet until the souls were properly gathered. Fortunately, it was not necessary.**

"...you can do that?"

**Yes. But I am not permitted to do so unless ordered.** A brief pause. **It is not wise to contradict divine will beyond a certain extent. It results in direct intervention. Dracula has always understood this.**

Suzume tried her hardest to grasp what he was saying. "So basically, I won this battle because God, or a god, said so."

**That is a valid interpretation.**

"Well, it could have been explained to me a little sooner! Like, before I almost got myself killed! And Gaibon actually did!"

**Your success was ordered via proxy. My presence was necessary. It would not have been helpful if I informed you that I would be able to make you win the battle instantly, except for the fact that I had to first surrender my soul to the person that I was ordered to kill, so you would not be able to win after all, unless you did what you had already promised to do.**

She frowned. "That sounds kinda convoluted to me."

**It has always worked in this manner.**

"Really? Since when?"

**If it had not, the Belmont and Belnades clans would most likely not exist today.**

"...um... I've never heard of that one before."

**No one would have told you the details. After all, **and his voice almost had a smirk behind it, **it seems that such information is not to be known by any mortal, except for the one who is directly involved in the events.**

Suzume sighed. She should have expected that revelation. "So I'm not the first to do this."

**If nothing else, you are the first mortal that **_**I**_** have been sent to aid. It is rare that I am present and able to act on the non-demonic side of such a conflict. **A pause, and a slightly friendly tone. **And rarer still that a mortal trusts me to do so.**

* * *

Marcus Williams awoke suddenly to find himself in a field, just outside the outskirts of the castle that he had been exploring for so long. Soma was near him, and he was unconscious. A few feet away, Suzume was conversing with the grim reaper, while Gaibon and Slogra stood nearby.

He had lost track of events. He had been a vampire, and he had seen his student defeat the cardinal who had crossed him earlier, then had watched as she refused to protect Soma, yet refused to kill him, either. The cardinal had then recovered and attacked everyone, and started claiming souls. With little option, he had sent as much of his magical power to his staff as possible, hoping that what Yoko had told him was correct and Suzume wouldn't be affected, and he had blacked out, and now he was here.

He could tell that his injuries had been healed recently. The faint feeling of warmth was there. He also felt none of the faint hints of bloodlust that he had been trying to ignore for hours prior.

His awakening was not in time to hear the discussion of the second pending order that Death had received, which was to return all souls stolen by the cardinal to their rightful owners, such that all of them were still considered to be alive. This included Marcus and Soma, who probably would have died after the tower broke apart. This also included Death and Gaibon, even though being considered dead was hardly a limitation for them.

He did, however, catch the tail end of Death's explanation that this would not be extended to those who died prior to the cardinal's rampage. The victims of the village would remain dead. So would the clergymen, including Samuel.

"Death is a part of life", he said. "You must accept it." After a brief pause, he added to his statement. "This does not mean that I do not sympathize with your loss."

"What's going on?" Marcus asked as he got to his feet.

"It's over", Suzume told him. "The cardinal is dead, the vampires are gone, Soma is safe, and everything is back to normal."

Marcus breathed a sigh of relief. "You did it? That's great!" He stepped forward to hug her. "Thank you so much for your help! I knew I could count on you!"

She accepted his hug warmly. "I couldn't have done it without you." She hesitated slightly. "Or Death. Either of you. If not for you two, I would have never stood a chance."

He smiled. "That's what I'm here for."

"My mission is now complete", Death announced. "Suzume Belnades, you have done me a great service. I hereby release you from your pact, grant you full custody of your soul, and permit you to live the rest of your life."

She smiled in his direction. "Thank you."

Marcus hesitated. "What about Soma? I thought you wanted to kill him."

"I no longer have any need or desire to do so", Death calmly stated. "He no longer possesses the power of dominance."

Marcus stared at the reaper in shock. He knew what this meant. "Damn! Then Dracula..."

"He will return. I will see to it myself."

Suzume sighed. "So nothing's changed after all."

"I cannot abandon my other pacts. You know this."

Suzume took a deep breath. "You know, aside from a few mishaps, that last pact wasn't such a bad idea. I know it's kinda soon and all, but maybe you'd like to form another one?"

Death's skull did not betray any emotions. "What terms do you have in mind?"

She kept a cheerful smile on her face. "The main one I'm thinking of is the one where _you don't revive Dracula_."

Marcus raised an eyebrow. Death's voice grew dark. "Do not waste my time, mortal. You know full well that I..."

Without a word, Suzume drew her staff, pointed it at Death, and fired a blast from it.

The effect was dramatic. The blast caught Death off guard, and he was propelled backward a few feet to land flat on his back. Marcus remembered making an effort to increase her staff's power, but this was far more than he had expected. All he could manage was a small "wow".

Death disappeared briefly, and then appeared directly in front of her. "It seems that I allowed you to gain considerably more power than I should have permitted. I did not anticipate betrayal."

"It's not betrayal", Suzume pointed out. "We finished our pact." To make her message clear, she fired another blast at him. He was ready for this one, but even then it managed to knock him down, and his scythe fell to the ground a distance from him. "I can destroy you whenever I want. You know I can. Agree to my pact."

"You are correct. The pact is complete." He pointed. "**Gaibon. Slogra. Kill her.**"

This earned him another blast, and to Marcus's eyes, he was actually starting to look pretty pathetic. Suzume walked toward him slowly. "They still belong to me. We never discussed their return." She pointed at him. "_Pact. Now._"

"Your pact is unacceptable", Death said defiantly. "I am sworn to aid his return."

"No. You are not." Suzume paused, unsure of herself. Marcus couldn't tell why. Eventually she proceeded slowly. "Tell me about your relation to the crimson stone."

"I do not have to answer your questions", Death said, and then failed to dodge the next blast.

"I've heard of it", Marcus interjected. "Partially. It's an ancient alchemical artifact. Apparently Death is sworn to aid the bearer. Guess who has it."

"Good", Suzume said with a smile. "Since someone else said it, _and I didn't_, I think I can proceed." She took a deep breath. "I don't think dead people can hold onto stones. He's not the bearer right now, is he?"

"This is stupid", Death said. "When he returns, he will still be in possession of it. I know this from..."

"And until he does", Suzume interrupted angrily, "he doesn't bear it. So it's not a contradiction. You don't have to serve him when he isn't alive."

"Your plan will not work. He will return, whether or not I have anything to do with it. Alchemy guarantees it. You cannot change fate. And when he returns, I will be aiding him."

"I know this", she sighed. "I'm willing to take whatever I can get. Just... swear that you will not aid in his return."

"I will not agree..." he started, and he was blasted yet again. Marcus started to wonder why the reaper couldn't just teleport away and save himself a lot of trouble.

"The alternative is not having a body until he returns."

Death's voice was bewildered. "You..."

Suzume smiled again. "I didn't want you to kill Soma, either, but I didn't stand in your way. Finish the pact."

"It seems that I may not have any choice", Death grumbled. "I demand counterconditions. You must refrain from making any more attacks against me, and you must return Gaibon and Slogra to my possession."

She shrugged. "Okay, but only on the condition that Gaibon and Slogra will refrain from violence against me. I cannot promise that I will never attack them, though." She thought for a moment. "And I would prefer that I not die until it is my natural time. Don't try to speed it up or anything."

Death slowly nodded. "...I suppose I must accept this."

"Very good. Now we shake."

Keeping her staff in one hand pointed at him as a safeguard, she approached the place where he was still lying flat on his back and held out her hand. He reached out his own hand to take hers, and they shook. Then she used the same hand to pull him up, even though his floating nature meant that he had no particular need for it.

Gaibon and Slogra walked over to Death's position, and he slowly picked up his scythe. "I will not forget this farce, Belnades."

Suzume grinned. "I wouldn't want you to. I only expect you to honor it."

Without another word, Death and his minions vanished.

There was a lengthy period of silence before Marcus opted to break it. "That was kinda risky."

Suzume nodded, breathing heavily a few times. "I know. I couldn't have done that if someone hadn't convinced me that I could."

He grinned. "Heh. You're welcome."

Behind them, Soma finally started to stir. Marcus turned to talk to him. He had a lot of things to explain.

Suzume looked at where Death was, and considered her actions. She thought it was pretty clever, all things considered.

She had once believed that she was Death's pawn in his master plan to revive Dracula. In the end, she had decided that, regardless of his intent, she was more than that. Indeed, given the situation, everyone was. Slogra and Gaibon were his knights. Marcus was a bishop, albeit one that he was willing to sacrifice to cause the opponent to make a mistake. And it had become abundantly clear that, by the end of the mission, she had been promoted to queen.

Death, playing a game of chess, with her soul on the line. She groaned. That was such a tired cliché.

And then suddenly, in the face of a greater threat, he had gone so far as to teach her the rules of the game. So she was surprised to discover that it had less to do with capturing pieces, and more to do with changing the way the game worked, until it was possible to put the opponent in checkmate without ever risking a pawn. And she had taken to this surprisingly well, she had to admit.

Her opponent didn't have to be her enemy, either.

Her side got a lot out of this pact. Less Dracula was always good for humanity. She hoped that Death would realize exactly what she had given to him as well. Certainly, he had stuck around long enough to allow her to reach that point.

Of course, she pondered, that may have been only one move of a larger game.

"Suzume", Marcus interrupted, "I just thought of something."

"What's that?" she asked.

"You've read about the time that Dracula was sealed back in 1999, right? What do you suppose will happen if we try it again when he returns?"

"What happened last time?" she asked.

Soma sighed. "I was born. And then they came after me, seeking my power."

Marcus nodded. "Yeah, but I'm thinking, most of them needed to use demons to try and get your power, right? Well, what if there weren't any demons to help them? Maybe Dracula could be stopped from returning entirely!"

Suzume blinked. "How could anyone arrange that?"

"Well, if we're working from the theory that most of the demons belong to Death, and if you just told Death not to interfere..."

A way to stop Dracula entirely? The church would love that, she had to admit. At least, it depended highly on whether or not that theory was true.

She'd heard it before. In fact, she recalled, he was the one who taught it to her. She wondered...

"Maybe. But if I may ask, um, exactly where did you hear that theory, anyway?"

Marcus looked away briefly. "Uh... I'm not allowed to say. At all." He gave her a careful look. "As far as you know, it's just a theory, understood?"

* * *

In a dark alley somewhere in North America, a mugging had just ended badly.

The man looked around nervously. He hadn't intended on killing anyone. He loaded the gun, yes, but he intended to use it as a warning shot to prove that he could back up his threat. But the other guy had resisted, and one thing led to another, and... well...

"Struck down before his rightful time. How unfortunate."

The man's face went pale instantly. He especially hadn't counted on a witness. He slowly turned to see who was behind him.

Behind him, the recently deceased body of the victim remained on the ground. Above him, what appeared to be a floating skeleton holding a scythe in one hand, and a ball of light in the other. And it was staring directly at him.

"You have engaged in a particularly reprehensible form of robbery, Mr. Shane. A murderer steals life. He cannot return it. He cannot keep it. He cannot use it. Life has been taken away from the world as a whole, and you have nothing to show for it."

"What the hell are you?"

The skeleton gazed at the ball of light. "Mortals fear death. Like most fears, it is meaningless. Death is natural, and it is inevitable, but it is not a predator. Death follows life, and those who have spent their lives well have been known to welcome it warmly." He appeared to pocket the ball. "When you steal life, death has no choice but to be sudden. To end happiness. The people notice, and they begin to fear death, and the cycle begins anew." He floated directly up to the man. "I do not like to be feared, Mr. Shane."

The man started to panic. He pulled out the gun again and tried to fire at the advancing figure. It failed to accomplish anything.

"You continue to fear me. You are a victim of your own crime." He suddenly stopped. "There remains hope for you. Admit your error. Accept your punishment, and serve it. And then live the remainder of your life, a life that no one has chosen to steal at this time. Take solace in the knowledge that the amount of life that is stolen is less than it was before." He held out a large bony hand. "The law awaits your confession. Come with me. I shall escort you myself."

The man continued to stare at the figure of the reaper before him, and then came to a quick decision.

He turned and ran.

"I offered you a chance", the voice continued to say. "Accept your punishment."

The man was more concerned about the witness behind him. So he wasn't paying attention when a thin bony entity holding a spear emerged from the shadows in front of him. Without a second's hesitation, the beast plunged the weapon through the human's chest. He fell to the ground, leaving a pool of blood where he landed, and then he was still.

Death approached him and claimed his soul as well. It was sad, he reflected, how many of these mortals were unwilling to listen to reason. Still, some had accepted his offer, he noted. He wondered if he could arrange for a more benevolent afterlife for them, just to sweeten the deal.

He considered his surroundings. He was on the surface of the earth, he had a physical body, he had his minions, and aside from his usual reaping, he had no orders. He could act as he pleased, within his usual constraints, and his minions had been perfectly willing to aid him.

Much of humanity would disapprove of this. Perhaps they would come to appreciate it in time. After all, he meant what he had said. Death was not inherently the enemy of humanity, unless Dracula willed it so. And he wasn't here.

He had wished for this once, and whether she had intended it or not, the Belnades had given it to him. And, considering that Dracula would return one day, he would make as much of the current situation as he could.

He glanced out of the alley. There was what appeared to be a drinking establishment across the street. There would be a few deaths there shortly, but for the moment, it was quiet.

He adopted the form of an average male adult human. He would visit the location early for once, and as he waited for his presence to become necessary, he would figure out exactly why the other humans seemed to congregate to such places. It was a rare event when he had the opportunity to enjoy any kind of nourishment, and he didn't want to pass up the opportunity.

He glanced behind himself at Gaibon and Slogra, and gave them orders to remain hidden unless he had need of them. And perhaps, he told them, he would bring back something for them afterward.

**An End**


	11. End 4: War

**Ending 4: War**

Suzume had hoped that this moment wouldn't come to pass.

It could have happened in so many other ways. Soma could have been killed before she got here. Marcus could have located Soma and saved him while she fought off the vampire hordes. If Death had realized the importance of her assistance, he could have even decided to show mercy at the critical time.

No such luck. The situation had worked out exactly as Death had anticipated when he had formed the pact with her in the first place. Sometimes she wondered if he had a foresight for these things. It could be argued, she decided.

The cardinal had been defeated, and it still hadn't been enough to prevent this outcome. Soma was still manacled to the wall, and Death was still moving in for the kill.

Marcus continued to protest as he attempted to stand up. "Suzume! I mean it! We have to stop him! If we don't, Dracula..."

And if I do, she thought, Death...

_What I don't understand_, a long absent voice inside her head told her, _is why you think there's a decision at all. S_he thought about it, and her expression grew angrier, and she realized that it was right.

She threw up her hands. "This is _stupid!"_

Death turned his skull to look at her, his execution stayed briefly. Marcus watched her with interest.

She started walking toward the others, ranting loudly. "Why are we arguing about this? Have we all forgotten why we're supposed to be here?"

She pointed accusingly at Marcus. "You're a healer! You're a member of the church! _Why the hell are you still a vampire?_ You should have healed yourself ages ago! And what about Soma? If you wanted to stop the cardinal's plan, you should have been resealing his power or something!"

Marcus stared at her for a second, and then caught himself. "Uh, right!"

"And you!" she shouted, turning to Death. "Why are you preparing to kill Soma? The cardinal just tried to put you out of business! And look! I just laid him flat! If you should be reaping anyone here, it's him!"

"He is not yet deceased", he said calmly.

"Oh, for the love of God!" She picked up her scythe, walked over to the cardinal's body and swung the weapon so that its blade landed directly in his chest. There was a groan of pain from the man, and then it was gone. She left the scythe in his body as she turned to face the others again. "Do I have to do everything around here?"

"...y...you killed him", Marcus stuttered. "Why did you..."

"Serves him right! Trying to steal Soma's power, trying to turn people into vampires, trying to disrupt the proper flow of nature... you know, I could have sworn he was about to die, anyway!"

"...Suzume... this isn't like you. Have you gone insane?"

Suzume smiled at him. "I don't know. I've been through a lot. Maybe I have." She took a deep breath. "But you're right. This isn't like me. I'm not supposed to be some kind of killer! I'm a freaking priestess! I'm supposed to be helping the church, not killing members of the cloth! I'm supposed to be defending against the undead, not allying with them! And most of all, I'm supposed to protect the innocent, right?"

She walked back toward the back wall of the room and pointed at Soma. "And as far as I'm concerned, the only innocent person here who deserves to be defended is chained to that wall."

"Do not be foolish", Death reminded her. "You swore to allow me to kill him."

"I know I did! And I was a moron to do so! What kind of protector am I, promising to end someone's life and bring back the man who slaughtered millions, just to save my own skin?" She tried to smile at Death. She failed miserably. "I'm glad we were able to stop the cardinal. Thank you for helping me do it. But if our agreement requires him to die, then I'm sorry, but I'm not going to let that happen. I'm breaking the pact." She lowered her head. "So just kill me already."

"Stop!" Marcus interjected. "Please! Don't throw your life away like that!"

She shook her head angrily at him. "Throwing my life away? For God's sake, shut the hell up, Marcus! You should be dead, too! The only reason you're still here is that you decided to screw over everyone who bothered to help you! The clerics, Death, the vampires... oh, for crying out loud!" She traced the motion of the heal spell and cast it on him. "Since you're too busy to free yourself from a single bloody curse... I mean, honestly, do we really want the rest of the church to follow your example?"

He stared at her in shock. "Don't say that..."

"Murdering innocents, trying to revive the bane of mankind, manipulating each other, breaking promises, cursing the populace, destroying villages... everything we've been doing is wrong! And the worst part is that everyone here's supposed to be holy and religious and everything! Even the reaper! Aren't you supposed to be a divine being or something?" She threw her arms down in anger. "So why the hell is it that the only halfway decent people I've met around here all day are a couple of demons and the reincarnation of the dark lord? Just for once, I'd like to stop listening to your goddamn arguing and pay attention to what they..."

"I have listened to enough of your rambling", Death interjected impatiently. "I do not care what you think of my goals. If you are so eager to die, then accept it." He dashed forward and grasped Suzume by the neck. "But know that your sacrifice is meaningless. Soma will not be spared from his..."

"_Don't you dare_."

Death stopped his speech to look at the new speaker. Marcus looked up to see that Soma was glaring at Death.

The white-haired man continued. "I don't care if she made a pact or not. I don't care if she's lost her faith in everyone here. She is my friend's daughter. I will not allow you to kill her simply because she wishes to defend me."

Death was unimpressed. "Your sentiment changes nothing. She will die. You are next."

"_I insist._" Soma took a deep breath. "I am sick of this. I am sick of this obsession with the dark lord. I am sick of everyone I know and love being threatened because of me." With a quick move, he broke his chains from the wall. "I am going to end this."

"You are going to sacrifice yourself for her." Death's voice was incredulous. "I may never understand why mortals..."

Soma continued as if he hadn't been interrupted. "Half of everyone wants me to deny who I am. The other half wants me to become someone else." His voice lowered to a mutter. "I'm sorry, Mina."

Marcus was quick to figure out what he was planning. "Don't do it!" he shouted abruptly. "You know what will happen!"

Soma looked at him. "No. I don't. I know what people have told me will happen. And after what she said, I'm starting to think that I've been listening to everyone else for too long. From now on, I decide my own fate."

A large amount of essence rose from the cardinal's body and traveled directly into Soma's body. To the trained eyes of a priestess, his aura grew darker and more powerful. Even Death had to hesitate at his spiritual transformation.

"_And my fate is to be the dark lord_", Soma finished. He pointed at Suzume. "_Release her. Now."_

Death looked at him for a few seconds, and then allowed Suzume to fall to the ground. From her position, she could see Soma again. And he was... different. His hair was unkempt, and his eyes had become red. As she watched with a worried expression, he walked up to her and knelt down beside her.

Marcus's voice barely found itself. "No... It can't be... Dracula?"

Soma turned to look at him. "_No_." He faced Death. "_I will disappoint you, reaper. I am not Dracula. He is dead, and I intend to do everything in my power to ensure that he stays that way_."

"You insolent..." Death said in a furious tone, before he stopped himself and reverted to a quiet tone. "You refuse to be Dracula? You intend to make a new name for yourself as the dark lord?"

"_I already have a name. It is Soma._"

"Soma, I have no pact with you. Your orders are meaningless." Death raised his hand quickly and closed it. Suzume's body writhed once in pain, and then it was over.

Marcus was to her side in an instant. "Suzume! _No!_" He checked her quickly for signs of life, using a quick magical gesture to be sure, and then looked at Death again. "You bastard!"

"She betrayed our pact. She requested the consequences. You cannot deny me my rightful property."

"_I can._" Soma opened his hand to reveal that it was holding a soul. "_Your master called it the power of dominance. She has denied you and given herself to me._"

"She has no right to do so. Nor do you."

"_After everything you have done to me, I care nothing for your rights._" He placed a hand on Suzume's body. "_Rise._"

And she did, warily. "What the hell just happened?" she asked. Marcus stared at her and Soma wordlessly.

"You may not care", Death said angrily. "**Others do. I have been granted the right to end your life and reclaim my rightful soul. I obey wholeheartedly.**"

And he dashed forward at an inhuman speed, wielding his scythe. Just before he could connect with Soma, Suzume held up her spear and blocked his attack. "No", she said. "You will not hurt him."

**"Is that so?"** As he continued to press the scythe against her spear, Death lifted one arm and lifted it in the air, producing a large sickle, and swung this at Soma as well.

Marcus was too fast for him. He had already picked up the staff that Suzume had dropped, and he moved it in the way well in time to obstruct the sickle. "I must defer to Soma", he said calmly.

**"You mortals are entirely too eager to die." **Using his two blades, he continued to apply pressure to their weapons. Suddenly, from nowhere, a third bony arm sprouted from his back, holding another sickle. He held it where they could see it and realize that they were out of defenses, and...

...it was knocked out of his hand. Two weapons landed on the floor nearby. Death's sickle, and a spear that resembled the one Suzume carried.

**"What? How **_**dare**_** you defy me?"** He turned to face Slogra, who was standing at the top entrance of the room. He leapt over the balcony and landed behind his former master, then picked up his spear and pointed it at him. Behind him, Gaibon followed, using his wings to slow his descent as he breathed a few flames at the grim reaper.

Suzume smiled. "I guess we know who they'd rather work for."

**"Do **_**not**_** mistake mindless servitude for loyalty!"** Death rose before everyone, lifting his weapons, the sickle returning to his third arm. And then there was a fourth arm. Two more followed, and all were wielding implements of Death. **"You cannot comprehend how foolish you were to antagonize me. I am Death, and I swear that I will claim you all! You cannot hope to remain standing against my power. Throughout eternity, I have..."**

And he was cut off as Soma threw what appeared to be a trio of fireballs at him. "_Leave us alone_", Soma insisted. "_Or you will pay the consequences._"

"_**The consequences? The consequences you have wrought are far more severe!**_"

And behind him, Suzume could see them. Zombies. Skeletons. Armor. Representatives from almost every kind of demon that had been in the castle, climbing up the stairway from the main tower to line up behind Death. And they kept coming. There appeared to be no end to them.

...they belonged to him, she realized. They would obey him. They would attack, and not even the five of them could hold them and the grim reaper off forever.

And suddenly, she was being lifted up and held from behind. She looked down, only to see what appeared to be an oversized gray claw upon her chest, and her back was pressed against someone's flesh. To her side, Marcus was a victim of the same fate. Meanwhile, Gaibon had picked up Slogra again.

"_They do not belong to you!"_ a dark inhuman voice roared. _"YOU WILL NOT HAVE THEM!"_ And before she could react, Death and his demons were becoming distant as she found herself being carried into the air. There was the sound of something breaking, and pieces of rubble fell below her, and Gaibon and Slogra dodged them as they pursued. Seconds later, all she could see was the morning sky, tinted with the colors of sunrise.

* * *

Suzume awoke in a forest.

She tried to recall how she had gotten there. She couldn't remember anything after she had been carried away from the castle. Apparently she had decided that it was the opportune time to sleep. After the past day, she most likely needed it.

There were others sitting near her. Marcus was obvious, and she started wondering if she had been too harsh with him earlier. On her other side... it looked like Gaibon and Slogra were still there. And across from her...

...what was that thing? It looked similar to a grayish Gaibon, if he had overdosed on steroids and was three times his normal height. It had large bat wings on its back, and unlike Gaibon, they were not part of its arms, which rested on its knees in a surprisingly casual manner. It had a terrifying gaze, and its toothy maw looked large and sharp enough to devour her whole.

And it had not attacked her. "What... what are you?" she reluctantly asked.

The massive demon replied in a monstrous yet calm voice. "_I am still Soma_."

Marcus watched him warily. "Are you sure? Because I've heard of forms like that one being used by Dracula."

The demon glared. "_I am not Dracula. Even if I must be the dark lord, I refuse to succumb to that fate_." He paused briefly. "_Death will pursue me. I'm sorry all of you had to see me like this. I had hoped that this wouldn't happen_."

"The dark lord?" Suzume asked. "So we failed?"

"_I... don't know._" The demon readjusted his legs. "_Perhaps this is my fate after all. I just... I can't let it dictate my existence._"

"Isn't there anything we can do?" Marcus asked.

"_The only thing I can do right now. I will defend myself. I refuse to fall against Death._" His eyes traveled between everyone around him. "_I can't ask you to get involved._"

Suzume shook her head. "I am involved. You took my soul, right? If you fall, I fall." She smiled. "So I'd better do everything I can to make sure you stay alive."

As she spoke, Gaibon and Slogra nodded as well. She turned to them. "Are you sure you want to be here? Death was kinda your master and all..."

Marcus shook his head. "I'm... not sure they can decide for themselves."

"I don't like it." She looked at them. "If they wish to stay, they can. But I'm not controlling them. I'm not ordering them. I... I don't want them to be my slaves."

Slogra looked at her cautiously, and then walked up to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. A moment later, Gaibon mirrored him. She smiled at them, and they returned the gesture with a mouthful of sharp teeth and an open beak.

"Personally, I shouldn't stay", Marcus admitted. "I'm not a fighter. Besides, I need to speak with the church. They'll want to know about this."

The large demon nodded. _"I accept that. If I may, I would like to ask you to perform a favor for me afterward._"

As Marcus acknowledged this, Soma continued. "_Go to Mina. Keep her safe. Tell her... tell her that I can't be with her right now... but I'll return... as soon as I can... once everyone is safe. Tell her not to worry... I refuse to die._"

Marcus smirked. "Should I tell her you love her?"

"_No._" The demon looked thoughtful. "_When I return, I'll tell her myself._"

"I may hint at it, though", Marcus said jokingly. That said, he said his farewells, left the makeshift camp and headed toward the nearest town. They would hopefully have some form of transportation there.

Suzume looked around. "There are four of us. I think Death's got at least hundreds. I wouldn't want you to break your promise."

The demon looked down at her. "_I do not intend to._" And suddenly, without any visible warning, a number of glowing orbs that may have been souls erupted from the dark lord's body. As she watched, they sank into the earth.

And then more demons rose. Demons of every kind, surrounding them. Suzume even recognized some of the more unique ones. If these had come from Soma... they must have originally been claimed by the cardinal... from the souls that had been released by her battling... which meant that she was now surrounded by _every demon she had killed yesterday._

Before she could panic, she felt a large claw touching her. "_They are mine. They will obey me. They will protect you._" And, looking at them and their body language, it almost looked to her as if they would. Most ignored her. Some adopted a guard position. Some even regarded her directly.

"So this is my fate", she sighed. "I am fighting alongside the dark lord and his demonic minions."

"_Mere hours ago, you said that you believed we could be as benevolent as any human._" His claw scratched her back lightly. "_I agree that it is possible. From now on, I intend to prove it._"

* * *

Seven months later...

Suzume set down her ballpoint pen and looked over what she had written. Next to her, an envelope, addressed to the location of the church branch where she had been raised, care of Yoko Belnades. Next to that, an already opened letter, addressed to Soma Cruz, coming from Marcus Williams. She had considered that she hadn't spoken to any of them since she left, and felt that a reply was warranted.

_Dear mother,_

_I apologize for not writing sooner. It has been kinda busy around here for obvious reasons, and I don't know what you've heard around the church, so I guess I should explain everything I've been doing since I left._

_In short, the demons are engaged in civil war._

What else could she call it? Soma had his side. Death had his, and they were regularly battling each other. Both leaders were hesitant to risk their own lives in battle, especially Soma, as his demise would lead to the entire eradication of his side.

Not quite eradication, she had to admit. Death would simply reclaim them. The whole war was more like a game of dodgeball than anything else. When Death killed one of Soma's demons, its soul returned to hell, from where he could summon it to fight on his side. And Soma simply claimed the souls of the demons he killed. In that sense, it truly was a civil war. Demons against demons, with no differences between them but their allegiance. If not for their lack of casualties, it would almost be tragic.

_If you told me when I was growing up that large portions of the world would be overrun by demons, I wouldn't have believed you. Or, in the case that I acknowledged the possibility, I would have been terrified. So whenever I think about this war, I can't help but find it kinda strange._

_I mean, you'd expect the demons to be harming humanity during their battles. But from what I've seen and heard, they mostly aren't._

She wasn't exaggerating. She had been with several groups of demons on occasions when they passed through a town. And then they left shortly afterward, and the humans were no worse off than before. She wasn't sure what the creatures were doing, but Soma had mentioned the occasional need for supplies. Were they stealing them? Buying them? Promising not to attack if they received what they wanted? She kinda wondered about that. Maybe she'd ask Soma.

It had been a long time since Soma set foot in town, though.

_I'm currently stationed with Soma's main group. In case Marcus didn't tell you, it turns out that Soma is currently responsible for the fact that I'm still alive, so I kinda feel an obligation to help him. I'm sorry, but in light of this, I probably won't be able to come home until the war is over. I miss you all frequently. Say hello to my sister for me._

_Marching across the countryside with a group of demons isn't as bad as it sounds. Even so, it's been a while since I've had to do that. I recently found a new purpose among the demons, and Soma felt that it was important enough to ensure that I stay as far from the actual fighting as possible. So, for the moment, I am guaranteed my own safe form of transportation._

_Well, not quite my own. Gaibon and Slogra ride with me. They seem to want to be my bodyguards, and Soma occasionally finds other purposes for them. I don't know if you've ever met those two, even as their enemy. I think you'd like them._

She looked up from her notes. Gaibon was still sitting on her right, and Slogra on her left. She looked at them briefly. Slogra nodded briefly in a manner that she had taken to mean "all's well".

She remembered that day, and Soma probably would as well. She had stopped in a village library to do research, as she was finding it more and more useful to learn new magic that could be useful in battle. So she had been looking through the offensive magic tomes when she had noticed a book that had been misfiled there.

It was a book on conjuration. Not quite relevant, she had thought, considering that she already had all the demons they needed in the area and Death would not permit her to steal from his supply. Yet she had looked through that book anyway, and she found something that, honestly, she had been wanting for a long time.

In the middle of a chapter about proper methods of maintaining summoned demons, the description and explanation of a spell that could heal their injuries.

She wondered if that alone had turned the course of battle. Certainly, every demon she healed was a demon Death didn't get, and that meant that Soma was more likely to win by attrition.

_Sometimes I wonder if I'm fighting for the good guys at all. Certainly, I'm on the side that wants me to stay alive, and that's good enough for me. But Death is apparently summoning demons to the planet, and I'm not sure he can do that unless he has orders to do so, and those orders would have to come from someone who isn't Dracula. It's entirely possible that the powers that be __**want**__ him to bring down Soma._

_That's a sad thing about war. There really doesn't have to be a good or evil side, does there?_

_Either way, it looks like our side is winning. Soma's army is growing larger, and my theory is that we're only losing if our soul count is diminishing. You can tell by looking at Soma, too. When he claims a bunch of souls, you can see the difference. He starts looking taller and more powerful. It's kinda scary, but I think it counts as a good sign._

She looked to her left. Just past Slogra, she could see Soma, and he looked vastly different from what he did when the war began. It was impossible not to notice. Sure, he had the same basic physical structure, but his fangs were more pronounced, his muscle tone had developed greatly, his claws had extended, and then there was the matter of his size.

She had spoken with him recently on the subject. He tried to alleviate her fears by saying that, despite all the physical changes that had happened to him, he was still the same Soma that she had defended back then, and this was not going to change as long as he continued to exist. If nothing else, he said, be happy that he could protect her more effectively.

_I wonder what'll happen if Soma wins this war. Will he claim Death's soul and force him to serve him directly? Will he replace the grim reaper in his duties, or at least lead the demons in hell? When the demons are united, will they grow bored and attack humanity again? There are so many unanswered questions, and I don't believe I'll know the answer until we get to that point._

_Marcus tells me that the church has become very popular recently. The constant presence of demons probably earned you guys a whole bunch of converts by itself, but he also says that there's a lot of interest in training holy defense. I kinda like that idea. I'm not completely convinced that some of the demons aren't causing trouble, and I'm thinking it would be great to be able to stop them if they tried. Keep them honest, you know. I'm sure Soma feels the same way._

_Well, that's all I can think of right now. Once again, say hello to everyone for me. Soma sends his best to Mina, as usual. I hope this message finds you safely. - Suzume_

Satisfied with what she had written, she placed the letter into the envelope and handed it to Slogra. He took it dutifully, turned around and started to climb up from their current position.

The immediate task completed, she turned to look at Gaibon. The red gargoyle bared his teeth in his usual friendly manner at her. She smiled back and nodded slightly.

The corner of his maw lifted slightly, and he leaned forward into a crawl and moved directly next to her. As he straightened up again, she reached out and wrapped her arms around him, and he surrounded her body with his wings as well. His tongue flicked against her chin, cuing her to open her mouth and allow his tongue to enter and rub against her own. She then leaned forward, causing her lips to rest against his maw, and he leaned back and allowed her to sprawl forward upon his well-toned chest, kissing him passionately.

Suzume hadn't been able to convince herself to tell her mother the most important news. It had started so subtly, too. Gaibon had been aiding her in battle back then, and they had just finished defending their camp against an ambush one day, and he had been slightly injured, and she had decided to comfort him by hugging him. So she did.

And then, for some reason, she went further. And he responded in kind.

It had taken her a few weeks to build up a suitable immunity to the inside of her mouth being scalded by his fiery breath. Back then, it was a sign for them to stop immediately and fetch water. Nowadays, she considered a small tongue of flame passing between their jaws to be a playful act of love, and she had trained herself to extinguish it with her own saliva.

Once that problem had been solved, he had decided to go further still. Further than she would have expected, to be honest.

She wouldn't be able to keep it a secret forever. She recently passed the three month mark on her pregnancy, and it was starting to show.

She hadn't even been sure that such a child was possible, but Soma had detected its soul and described it to her, and he had told her that it was remarkably strong. She still wasn't sure if it could survive to term. Soma promised that, if nothing else, he would claim its soul if it passed away and keep it in that form. It was bizarre and it sounded like it would stunt its development, but she thought it was preferable to nothing.

She kinda looked forward to raising it. She wondered if it would have any capacity for magic. Gaibon would have to teach it how to fly, of course. And she had already thought of a name for it.

Yokoi. "More than love". Somewhere between Yoko and a youkai.

* * *

Slogra needed less than a minute of climbing to reach his destination.

Soma turned his head to look at the spear-wielding demon, and saw the letter in his hand, and nodded. Moments later, an imp was summoned. It flew to Slogra's position and took the letter. A white bandanna, their unofficial symbol of a demon who sought to conduct nonwar business with humans, was tied around its body, and it soon took off in the correct direction to deliver it to Suzume's mother.

At the same time, another imp arrived. Slogra took the letter from this one, read it, and then held it up for Soma. The dark lord read it quickly, and then gave the signal to the others. A group of Death's demons had been spotted. The rest period was over. It was time for everyone to start moving again.

There was an impatient tap on Soma's shoulder. He turned his head again to see that Slogra was still standing on it. He pointed his spear toward Soma's right claw, and he could see that Suzume and Gaibon were still engaged in physical activities there.

Soma smiled to himself. They would not be needed for the next few minutes. Carefully, he closed his claw, gently holding the two together within the warm recesses of his palm. Slogra opted to stay on his shoulder for the moment, just in case.

Soma carefully stood up, the tops of the nearby trees brushing lightly against his thighs, until he had reached his full standing height. As a large portion of his army traveled through the nearby forest, his own platoon followed close upon his heels as he treaded across the plains.

He preferred the plains. He could make sure he wasn't stepping on anything there.

**An End**


End file.
